Two Hearts
by Tikayomi22
Summary: Yuzuhira and Kazuko Kurokawa's lives will change forever when they meet a mysterious baby who guides them to their destinies.
1. Chapter 1

This is my fanfic based off Katekyo Hitman Reborn. I've used pictures from Flowers, a visual novel by Innocent Grey productions, to represent my OC characters. Katekyo Hitman Reborn is not owned be me neither is the Innocent Grey artwork I use. I'll do my best to upload chapters and this is for fun.  
Thanks for reading~!


	2. Chapter 2

The Kurokawa sisters were well known within the Namimori district. Both sisters grew up in a small town in Italy but are of Japanese descent. They are both fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, Korean, and Japanese. Their singing was noted by a world renowned opera singer to be exceptional, they are both excellent piano players and prestigious ballet dancers. They were talented, rich, and gorgeous.

Yuzuhira Kurokawa was the eldest of the two sisters. Yuzuhira attended the elite Namimidori Academy, an all girl school. She was the first in the top percentile in her school. Yuzuhira was an eccentric yet relaxed, outgoing, and dynamic young woman. Because of her way of speaking and the randomness of the things she says, she is thought to be strange.

She is well trusted by all students at the academy. She has interests such as singing, soccer, and dancing. She was also known for her looks. Yuzuhira's skin was pale and her lips and cheeks had a natural pink tint to them. She was slim and had crystal gray eyes and extremely long gray hair that reached below her waist so she kept it in a high ponytail most of the time, with blunt bangs resting on her forehead.

Her younger sister, Kazuko Kurokawa was just as talented. Kazuko also attended Namimidori Academy and was the second, behind her sister in the top percentile. Kazuko was a rather eccentric ballet artist who is hard to approach due to her lack of emotional display. She'll express herself honestly when it comes to things she's interested in.

Other than that, she doesn't do anything unnecessary. She had a habit of narrowing her eyes when she spoke to people who would often be too intimidated to talk to her. But it could also be because how blunt she was when she spoke. Kazuko was talented but her heart was fully dedicated to ballet. Kazuko, just like her sister, was gorgeous. Kazuko had olive green hair and eyes. Her hair reached just under her shoulder blades with bangs, not as blunt as her sisters, however covering her forehead. Kazuko also had a large beauty mark on the right side of her neck just above her collar bone. Her skin was pale and her lips and cheeks had a natural pink tint to them just like her sister.

The relationship between the two sisters was normal. They competed with each other sometimes and shared almost everything just as sisters did. Yuzuhira's birthday was January 6th, she was seventeen, and soon to graduate Namimidori Academy. Kazuko's birthday was February 1st, she was thirteen, however, and had just been enrolled into Namimidori Academy.

The two girls had no idea that one day their entire lives would change drastically and quickly. They would never again live their lives as the proper girls they once were; because they caught the eye of a hitman who saw potential hidden deep within them. They had power and abilities that were to be awakened soon and used as intended from generations in the past.


	3. Chapter 3

The sun was shining bright, signaling the beginning of her day. The warm summer breeze cured her drowsiness. Kazuko yawned a bit as she walked toward her destination. She was on her way to her school but not before she met with her cousin and friend who tagged along before they all went separate ways. It was the beginning of a new school year and so far she was quite the loner. She had no real friends there. The only friends she had were her upperclassmen sister who she saw only during their first two classes, her cousin Hana Kurokawa, and her friend Kyoko Sasagawa, but those two went to a completely different school than her. They walked to and from school together because their schools weren't that far from each other and it was the only time they could spend any time together besides weekends.

"Kazuko!"

Kazuko turned to the sound of her name being called and gave a slight wave to the girl running up to her side. It was Kyoko.

"Good morning." Kazuko was introduced to Hana's friend during the summer and to be honest at first she was a bit jealous. Kazuko had only one other friend beside her sister and she felt as if this new girl was going to take Hana away from her. However, she grew to like Kyoko. She was always smiling. Kyoko was a bit shorter than her with golden brown short hair and golden eyes. She had an innocence and naivety about her that was refreshing.

"Hana's late," Kazuko said glancing at her watch on her wrist as the two continued making their way to school.

"She'll be out soon," Kyoko said with a giggle, "Say, Kazuko, what should we do to celebrate the new school year?"

"Celebrate?" Kazuko muttered, she hadn't really thought about celebrating the start of a new school year. There had been so many before, this one and it didn't seem any more important than the last or the next one.

"I don't think that's really necessary."

"Whaaat," Kyoko's voice filled with astonishment, "but wouldn't a little party together be fun?"

Kazuko wasn't one to celebrate every achievement she made. After the one-hundredth celebration of a milestone, it became stale. Kazuko saw the slight disappointment on her friend's face and sighed.

"Let's see what Hana thinks?"

Kyoko immediately perked up then suddenly a lazy voice was heard from behind and the girls turned their heads to look behind them.

"Morning," Hana said as if she was on cue. She appeared from around the corner of another street, stretching her arms and yawning.

"Good Morning Hana," Kyoko said brightly. Hana sighed heavily, she seemed more tired than she normally did in the mornings.

"Any longer and you would have missed us," Kazuko said dryly.

"Yeah, yeah," Hana replied casually, " You don't get a lot of rest around here lately..." A scowl dawned on Kazuko's face and Kyoko tilted her head.

"What do you mean?" Kazuko asked.

"Don't you get woken up in the middle of the night by fireworks?" Hana asked as she peered over her shoulders while squinting. She looked as if she were making sure she wasn't being watched.

"What are you looking for?" Kyoko asked. Even she began to peer over her shoulders to see if she could find whatever Hana was looking for.

"It's right around this time in the morning when we see something strange," Hana said, "and it usually has something to do with that no-good Tsuna."

"Tsuna?" Kazuko was sure her cousin was losing it more and more everytime she saw her.

"He's a student at our school! He's a little rambunctious though." Kyoko said with a giggle. Kazuko shrugged, them talking about another student didn't interest her in the slightest, until half a second later.

"AGGGGH! THAT'S A SHORTCUT!"

The girls ceased all movements. Kazuko wouldn't have believed it if she hadn't seen it with her own eyes. A boy. A boy wearing nothing but red boxers, glowing skin, and what appeared to be a flame on his forehead ran past them at impossible speed. He was yelling, hopping onto fences, and running on rooves. Kazuko felt her left eye twitch involuntarily.

"There he goes again..." Hana sighed as she covered her face with her hand and Kyoko smiled widely.

Again. As in this has happened before?

"T-This is...This is an everyday thing?" Kazuko asked frantically.

"Yeah," Hana said, clearly annoyed, "And that's our cue. Let's hurry Kyoko or we're gonna be late."

Hana and Kyoko waved and made a slow jog toward their school. Kazuko, however, was left filled with more questions than answers.

Kazuko shook her head and made her way to her school. It was at that moment she felt a pair of eyes piercing through her and turned around. There was no one but a lonely gust of wind and a single leaf caught in its flow. Kazuko frowned deeply as she made her way to school, she felt as if this was the last normal day she'd ever have.


	4. Chapter 4

Kazuko still couldn't get the image of that weird guy running around town in his underwear. Hana and Kyoko said he was a student at their school and that it wasn't anything odd about what they saw. Kyoko slid the door open and immediately regretted it.

"LITTLE SISTER!"

Yuzuhira, her big sister, wrapped her arms around her tightly and yanked her into the room. Yuzuhira had her arms wrapped around her neck and had her face buried in her breasts. Kazuko felt the familiar panic setting in when her oxygen was quickly cut off. Kazuko pulled her face away to get a gulp of air but was brought right back to her sister's chest.

"How was your morning?! Did you eat breakfast? I feel like I haven't seen you all day!"

Kazuko used all her strength and pulled herself away from her very clingy sister.

"It's only been an hour!" Kazuko gasped in as much oxygen as she could. Her sister stared at her with hearts in her eyes and her hands clasped together over her chest. Kazuko straightened her clothes and hair.

She moved around her sister and sat at her desk next to the window, her sister following her as if she were floating. Kazuko turned and looked out of the window. Her sister was next to her asking weird questions and fawning over her. She's always been like that. Since she could remember her older sister had spoiled her rotten and always expressed intense affection for her. As the years went by she began to fell more irritation at her sister for acting that way and not being normal. _Normal._

Kazuko's gray eyes widen momentarily before she returned her attention back to her sister who was still talking nonsense in the background.

"Yuzu," she began, "have you noticed anything weird lately?"

Yuzuhira abruptly stopped and raised a delicate gray eyebrow.

"What do you mean," she said crossing her arms under her chest, "is someone bothering you?"

Kazuko blew a puff of air. Her sister seemed to think she was a fragile little child still.

"No one is bothering me Yuzu," Kazuko said turning her attention back toward the window, "it's just that there's just weird stuff happening lately and I thought maybe you noticed something too."

Yuzuhira shrugged and placed her hands on her hips.

"I haven't noticed anything weird lately," she said, "maybe it's just your imagination."

Kazuko ignored her sister. Of course, she wouldn't notice anything weird. She was weird.

"But you know," Kazuko suddenly heard her sister begin, "I have felt as if someone has been watching me."

Kazuko quickly turned to Yuzuhira who had a very serious look on her face.

"I felt like that this morning."

Yuzuhira's face was deep and brooding. She was worried. They were daughters of a rich and successful couple. Their father was an extremely successful administrative doctor and their mother was, what she referred to herself as, an S-list celebrity an actress-singer. To be followed or even stalked wouldn't be unheard of. Kazuko and Yuzuhira both had their share of stories from almost being kidnapped or stalked by someone for ransom.

It was installed in them at a very early age not to trust anyone but each other and their parents. They were forced to treat friends and distant family members coldly and because of that they never really had close friends. They even have had self-defense classes like Ju Jitsu and deadly fighting like Muay Thai for precautionary measures. However, those classes were kept a secret to have the upper hand in an assault. They took those classes a while ago and hadn't taken another one.

Yuzuhira's eyebrows rose when the school bell rung, signaling the beginning of the school day.

"Well," her older sister said, "Keep your eyes open."

With that Yuzuhira moved a row and a few seats back to her seat. Even though her sister was a third year in Namimidori Academy, she and Kazuko had the same first classes because Kazuko was too advanced for her first-year classes. The school had even promised her parents that she would graduate early with academic honors at the rate she was going.

Still, she couldn't shake the feeling...like something was going to change.


	5. Chapter 5

Kazuko was pretty sure Kyoko and Hana were at home, had dinner, and even went to bed. The sun was setting and the sky was beautiful orange and yellow. Classes were over three hours ago but Kazuko had to stay and help the other first years with their English lessons. Still, Kazuko made her way to Namimori Middle. She was hoping for whatever reason she would maybe catch up with them.

When Kazuko turned a corner on the empty street, a fifty or so feet away from the gate of the school when she heard voices. They were loud and it sounded like a couple of them. Kazuko came to a stop when she saw three tall boys in a green school uniform emerging from an alley a few feet in front of her. She recognized the uniform, they went to a school not too far from here, they belonged to Kokuyo Junior High.

When the group of boys noticed her they stopped cold in their tracks and smirked at one another. She sighed. Was it one of these days huh?

"Look at what we have here," the middle one said, "a Namimidori girl huh?"

The middle one seemed to be the leader. He had dark shaggy hair and tan skin. There was one on his left that was a bit shorter than him but taller than her. He was muscular, more than the other two. The third one was skinny and looked like he didn't have a clue. He just seemed to be enjoying being with the other two.

"She sure is a beauty," the skinny tall one said. They were in front of her in no time and circling her like vultures. They were whistling, howling, and chuckling. She had already had enough. She went to move past them but was stopped when a large arm was stretched in front of her. It was the leader.

"Where are you going," he asked with a sly voice, "the party just started."

Kazuko glared the boy. A glare that could kill, hoping she wouldn't have to resort to forceful tactics. Kazuko saw a figure suddenly appear behind the group of boys, in front of her. It was another boy, but he was different. As he stood there watching and letting the other boys notice him. They turned quickly, taken aback.

"K-Kyoya Hibari?!"

Kazuko, still irritated, looked the boy up and down. He was around the same age as her, around average height, he had short black hair with a fringe that joins at the center of his face, with narrow gray eyes, that was intimidating the group around her. He wore a white short sleeve buttoned shirt with a red tie, black slacks, black belt, black shoes, and a red armband with gold trim and gold lettering that read Disciplinary Committee.

"Kokuyo Junior High, eh?" the black haired boy said.

The group of boys around her were visibly trembling but still standing there. Kazuko sighed. She had enough. The group of boys were idiots and obviously had an issue with this "Kyoya Hibari" but she was being dragged into it just being next to them.

"You're a nuisance to Namimori Middle," he said. Then it clicked with her. He must have been a part of the Disciplinary Committee at Namimori Middle. He seemed bored with this entire endeavor and so was she. He also seemed to take his duties as part of the Disciplinary Committee too seriously. This would be the last time she tried to meet up with the girls this late again.

"Leave," Kazuko blinked rapidly and to make sure her eyes were seeing what she thought she saw. That's when she noticed the Disciplinary Committee's boy tonfa's, "or I'll bite you to death."

The boy's arms were raised in front of him and in his hands were tonfa's. They were steel. They were actual weapons. Kazuko was a bit worried. This boy seemed to be fighting with these people for real.

"Y-you ca-can't take us all on!" It was the leader again and he didn't seem quite sure himself as he stood there. The other two seemed to want to back down but stayed where they were. These guys were idiots. If they didn't leave he would probably put them in the hospital or worse.

When the boys didn't back down she could see everything going in slow motion. The leader, who was standing in front of her was about to throw a punch. Kazuko couldn't take it. This was a dangerous situation. So she did what made sense in her mind.

Kazuko let her pink bag slip from her shoulder, and drop to the ground. Kazuko grabbed the back of the leader's school uniform, swiftly turned, and tossed him overhead. Kazuko was small and the force of her throw would have brought her down on top of him, but her training had prepared her for that type of problem. Kazuko used the body of the boy who was laying flat on his stomach, winded, and cartwheeled herself over him. Her ballet lessons paid off when it came to her outstanding flexibility and agility.

Kazuko landed flat on her feet and turned to face the other boys. The other two boys were scared, she could almost smell it. They stood, shocked as they stared at that Namimori boy and then back at her. She was hoping that alone would make them turn and run with their tails between their legs. Kazuko was sadly mistaken when the boys reacted and not how she had hoped.

"You-" the clueless one charged for her but was quickly halted. The boy with the tonfa's had landed only a single hit on his back, knocking him out cold. He landed on top of the other one, pinning the tan one underneath him. The very last one was shaking horribly, his knees wobbling. The tonfa boy started to make his way over to him. Without a second to think Kazuko ran in front of the cowering boy.

Kazuko stood in front of him with her arms stretched out and bowed her head.

"They're sorry," Kazuko said softly, "and I think they've had enough."

The boy stood still in front of her and said nothing. Kazuko looked up at him through her bangs. Her olive eyes gleaming under the setting sun. The boy's gray eyes were shimmering as well. His gaze was fierce and intimidating but there was a look in his eyes. A look of intrigue. He looked fascinated with her. Why?

He was silent as he watched her. He had not even blinked as he watched her. Kazuko stood straight up and gave a small awkward smile. He wasn't attacking them or her. She quickly made a move to grab the bag she dropped and bowed once more before she made a slow jog home. Unaware that she was being watched by him and also another pair of eyes.


	6. Chapter 6

"So, Professor Borin," her father began, "I hear you're a mathematical genius that can solve every single problem previously considered impossible to solve. Why do you think Namimori Middle School would benefit my daughter?"

 _This couldn't be happening._

"Well, your daughter is a gorgeous, budding young lady," the disguised baby began, "fluent in English, Spanish, Italian, and Korean. Her singing has been praised and noted to be exceptional by a world-renowned opera singer. She's surpassed her five star piano teacher in playing the piano, she has the highest grade point average at an elite all-girls school, and she is on her way to becoming a prestigious ballet dancer."

Kazuko couldn't continue to eat her salad. She had completely lost her appetite. How did they get here? Why was this happening? Why did she open the door? Why did her parents fall for this dumb disguise? This "Professor" was clearly a baby wearing a costume! Not to mention you couldn't see anything but the very top of his head as he spoke!

Kazuko felt her palms starting to sweat and the entire dining room felt like a sauna. There was no way this was going to work. His plan was ridiculous. Kazuko glanced over to Yuzuhira who was smiling brightly at "Professor Borin" and Kazuko almost fell out of her chair.

 _She was falling for this too?!_

"Namimori Middle School is such a lackluster school," Kazuko turned to the talking baby, "I don't think the school would be beneficial to her. I think she would be beneficial to the school."

Kazuko blinked.

"Kazuko would be assigned to classes she's mastered at Namimidori and teach the failing students before and after school hours. It a great opportunity for her. She would be deemed with an Honorary Certificate of Namimori Honors!"

Kazuko choked on the sip of water she attempted to drink as her parents were clapping and gasping excitedly.

 _THAT WASN'T A REAL THING!_

"Kazuko," she heard her name being whispered and turned to meet her sister's gaze, "Doesn't he look like Reborn?"

Kazuko's eyebrow twitched as her irritation reached its limit. She lifted her foot slightly and stomped onto her sister's feet. Yuzuhira held in her yelp of pain.

"That _IS_ Reborn!" When their mother turned to them with a curious look on her face they both perked up and smiled at her. As soon she turned away to watch Professor Borin gulp down a steak Kazuko continued her glare and Yuzuhira continued her whimpering.

Kazuko placed her elbow on the table and supported her face in her hand.

She sighed. Since she met everybody, Tsuna, Haru, I-Pin, Lambo, Yamamoto, Gokudera, Bianchi, and _Kyoya_ , she has definitely lost a lot of her usual composure.

"Kazuko, dear," Kazuko looked up at her mother, "Don't you think this is an amazing opportunity?"

Her mother's beautiful smile grew wider as she clasped her hands together. This is tiring and she wanted it to end before any more lies came out.

"I-I don't know a-about this?" Kazuko said sluggishly. Kazuko swallowed. She couldn't bring herself to do it. She couldn't bring herself to tell them this was a baby. He was in disguise and he wanted her at Namimori for purposes other than school. She couldn't even remember why all this started happening but she knew when it all started. It was a few weeks ago when she and Yuzu met everybody.


	7. Chapter 7

Author Note:

From this chapter on you'll be reading how Yuzu and Kazuko met everyone. (Just in case anyone is confused). I'll have an author's note when the story returns to its present time.

* * *

So it's been a couple of weeks since Kazuko fought those Kokuyo students and saw that Disciplinary Committee guy. She didn't tell anybody about what had happened not even Yuzu. Kazuko had even avoided walking with Hana and Kyoko every morning and evening just to make sure she didn't run into him or those Kokuyo students either. And apparently, they have had strange things happen to them while she was away.

Hana had some weirdo pervert chase her home one day and Kyoko, well she apparently had nothing new happening with her lately. Kazuko had felt bad blowing them off so many times and made a date to go out with them today. However, Hana was the one to cancel this time. So now it was just Kazuko and Kyoko.

Kyoko smiled happily at Kazuko as they made their way into town. Kyoko was quite a cute and carefree girl. Her short golden brown hair was blowing in the cold breeze and her bright golden eyes were full of excitement. She had on a yellow turtle neck sweater, a white winter jacket, a red and white knee-length plaid skirt, black knee high socks, light brown knee-high boots, and a red purse over her shoulder.

They got up super early to go out together. They had breakfast, went window shopping, and were making their way to a dessert shop Kyoko recommended. They had a bunch of laughs and hilarious stories, most of Kyoko's stories were about Tsuna and how crazy things got with him, all they friends she had gained so far this year, and her big brother Ryohei. Kazuko met him a one or two times but never really had a chance to talk to him.

"I'm so excited," Kyoko exclaimed with a pink blush on her cheeks, "this is the first time we've spent the day together, just the two of us."

Kazuko smiled, thoughtfully. They had been friends for maybe a year or so and she hadn't thought about it. They never had a day like this before. They were having fun.

"Kazuko I really love your outfit," Kyoko said, bringing Kazuko from her thoughts. Kazuko was wearing a dark green hooded peacoat and under it was a brown v-neck long sleeve sweater, a pair of calf high laced up black boots, black stockings, a black mini skirt, brown checkered pattern scarf, a brown purse over her shoulder, and her hair was pulled into a high bun.

Kazuko smiled as she placed her hands in her pockets. She enjoyed Kyoko's company.

"We're here!" Kazuko suddenly felt Kyoko grabbed her hand and pull her to a small building called "Cake and Bread". She clapped her hands, pulled the door open, and practically shoved her in.

The place was little and quaint. It was quiet and no one else was there.

"Welcome Miss Kyoko!"

Kyoko almost tripped as she made her way to the display case, shooshing the cashier. Kazuko laughed out loud as she followed her friend to the counter.

"You come here a lot huh?," Kazuko laughed harder as Kyoko tried to cover her mouth before she could even get her question out.

"N-no, I don't..." Kyoko whispered something under her breath and a blush. Kazuko couldn't make it out and before she asked her to repeat it the cashier spoke up.

"We've got some new cakes this month Miss Kyoko," the cashier said as she pulled a small tray out and onto the counter. The tray had small decorated slices that she assumed were samplings. While Kyoko began to gleefully decide what she wanted to eat, Kazuko's olive colored eyes wandered onto the display case.

There were a lot of cakes, pastries, and different types of bread. They all looked fresh and delicious. Kazuko glanced at her friend and saw she was deep in thought. Kazuko turned her attention back to the display case and to a particular cake that made her taste buds water. A small sign read, "Yellow cake, chocolate frosting, gold trim decorative frosting, and topped with strawberries".

"Kyoko do you have the one you want?" Kazuko asked, breaking her concentration. Kyoko blinked and blushed. Her golden eyes had fallen on a yellow cake with layered white frosting and topped with strawberries.

"We'll take that one and that one." Kazuko pointed to the cake she wanted and the one Kyoko wanted. Kazuko reached into her purse and pulled out her wallet, grabbed her credit card, and placed it into the receiving hand of the cashier then once scanned placed back into her hand. Kyoko turned to her surprised.

"You don't have to pay for mine too," Kyoko said, a weary expression on her face.

"It's fine," Kazuko said with a smirk, "we're friends right?"

Kazuko watched Kyoko's eye light up as she wrapped her arms around her and squeezed. The cashier appeared with two small white boxes. As Kyoko and Kazuko grabbed them and made their way to the door Kyoko stopped. Kazuko hadn't even noticed two more people had come into the shop. One was a girl and a boy, around the same as them. Kazuko didn't recognize the girl but she definitely recognized the boy. It was the boy who she saw a few weeks ago jumping on buildings and screaming. Hana and Kyoko called him-

"Ah, Tsuna?"


	8. Chapter 8

"Ah, Tsuna?"

Kazuko stood next to Kyoko, staring at the person she called Tsuna and the girl. The Tsuna boy had spiky brown hair and large orange eyes, he was wearing a tan jacket with a lifted collar and blue jeans. The girl was quiet. She had brown eyes and dark brown hair in a high ponytail. She wore a dark green jacket, lined with fur, a red knee length skirt, a light green sweater, and a red large bag.

Tsuna seemed very flustered, rather extremely. He was waving his hands back and forth in the air and shaking his head while stuttering over his words.

"No, uh, Kyoko..."

Kazuko jumped when she heard Kyoko slightly raise her voice, which she had never done since she had met her. She had a blush that lit up her face and she also seemed flustered.

"Um! Um, this is a once-a-month thing!" Tsuna seemed to be taken aback at her statement and Kazuko had a sudden realization. That's what she had mumbled to her earlier. Kazuko snickered a bit. Kyoko looked at her and tried to explain again.

"Once a month, I let myself scarf all the cake I want," she began, "It's not like I eat three pieces of cake every day!"

Kazuko's snickering grew louder. Kyoko turned to her with puffed cheeks and Kazuko straightened immediately, holding her laughter inside.

"Oh, really...?" Tsuna was mumbling to himself before he was swiftly cut off by a rather loud and excited voice.

"I do that too!" The once quiet girl standing next to him began to chime in. She seemed very excited as Kyoko explained,"On every Haru Appreciation Day, I pig out on a cake as a reward to myself!"

"Wow, just like me!" Kyoko, calm now, seemed relieved especially after the girl continued about her indulgences.

"In my case, I always get the Mille-Feuille!" The girl said as she pointed to the one Kazuko had just bought for Kyoko.

"Me too," Kyoko exclaimed, "And the cream puffs!"

The two girls shared a laugh. Kyoko suddenly stopped and turned to Kazuko.

"I'm sorry," she said with a sheepish look on her face, "I didn't introduce you!"

Kyoko smiled and moved behind Kazuko and pushed her forward a bit.

"This is Kazuko Kurokawa," Kyoko said happily, "She's my best friend and she's Hana Kurokawa's cousin!"

"Hana's..." Kazuko turned to Tsuna who seemed to look a bit mesmerized by her. Was he a pervert?

"Hello," Kazuko said watching the brown haired boy, "You're Tsuna right?"

The boy taken aback once more paused for a moment before he nodded and bowed his head. Then suddenly a small but booming voice was heard.

"Don't just stand around talking," it said, "You can come to our place and have a nice long chat."

Kazuko looked around the shop. She was sure they were the only ones in the entire store yet had heard another voice. Then she looked down and a small person, no, a baby was sitting on the ground. He looked odd. He was wearing a tea serving attire.

"We'll serve you tea."

Kazuko blinked. This baby spoke very well.

"Why green tea?!" Tsuna suddenly shouted at the baby. He seemed to know him. Kazuko watched the girl and Kyoko kneel down in front of the baby. Did they know him too?

"Reborn!" the girl exclaimed.

"Wow, you're as cute as ever." Kyoko was next to greet him.

"Ciao-su," The baby greeted them and they smiled, "Well, let's go."

Kazuko watched the baby slowly turn to her and then a mischievous smile appeared on his face.

"All of you."

Kazuko felt the baby's stare was intense as his eyes were on her. She felt that gaze before but she couldn't place where.


	9. Chapter 9

Kazuko was genuinely confused. They were just at the cake shop. Then somehow they were at the Tsuna boys house. It wasn't too far from the school Hana and Kyoko went to. They walked back to his house and Kazuko introduced herself to everyone. The girl that was in the shop with Tsuna was his friend and her name was Haru. She was a nice girl and in the short time they spent walking she realized that Haru was very...enthusiastic and carefree. She was very similar to Kyoko in some ways. Tsuna, however, Kazuko couldn't get a read on. He didn't seem to stand out, dull.

Once they got to his house they were greeted by a woman, Tsuna's mother. She was a pretty woman, she had short brown hair and big brown eyes. Everyone greeted her and took their shoes off by the front door before adjoining upstairs. When Tsuna opened the door to his room they were greeted with two more people, a baby and someone else who seemed a bit older than her. Kazuko, of course, was introduced to them one by one.

The first person was Lambo, a boy. When she greeted him she noticed is right eye had remained closed. His outfit consists of a black jacket with a cowhide pattern collar, which was somewhat opened and left the upper half of his chest out, he wore a necklace with a bull pendant, beige pants, and sandals.

The second baby was strange but rather adorable with an egg shaped head. Her name was I-Pin. She was bald except for a single braid in the middle of her head. Her eyes seemed to stay closed and she wore a red cheongsam-style shirt with white sleeve cuffs over dark shorts.

Everyone sat at a small table Tsuna brought to his room and everyone was seated with desserts displayed in front of them. Kazuko felt a little uncomfortable having, what felt like, a party with people she had just met. Kazuko turned to Kyoko and sighed. Her friend was happy and content so she let it go. Who knew, maybe these people could be new friends?

"How is it, Reborn and Kazuko?" Kyoko asked. Kazuko slid her fork into a piece of her cake and took a small bite. The chocolate frosting tasted fantastic. The yellow cake was soft like a sponge. It was delicious.

"It's very good," Kazuko answered with a small hum.

"The Mont Blanc is quite good," the baby answered. That's right. She was introduced to Reborn too. He was quite the character alright. He was a baby as well. He was slightly tanned with black spiky hair and thin curly sideburns. He had somehow changed his attire to an all black suit, red long sleeve shirt, black necktie, and black fedora with an orange strip. There was also a small chameleon on his hat that Reborn introduced as Leon.

There was something familiar about him though. Kazuko could feel it as she glanced over at him. He was sitting next to her in a small chair. His gaze felt familiar.

"That's great," Haru beamed, "I highly recommend it."

Kazuko glance around the table once more and noticed Tsuna, sitting down quietly. He looked a bit disappointed while he was watching Kyoko. Now that she thought about it, he had been watching her since they left the cake shop.

"Go on, I-Pin. Help yourself!" Kyoko said as she scooted a piece of cake in front of the little girl who was sitting between her and Haru.

"Thank you," I-Pin said happily.

"We bought a whole bunch, so we have plenty left," Haru agreed.

"Yeah," Tsuna said timidly before he leaned over and whispered something to Lambo. Kazuko didn't hear what they said and ignored it. Kazuko jolted a bit when she felt a vibration by her leg. She reached into her purse and pulled out her phone. Her sister's name was on the caller ID.

"That's a cute phone Kazuko," Kazuko looked up at Haru, who had complimented her. Her phone was a large white Docomo smartphone with a sparkly pink phone case and cute phone strap with a ballerina attached at the end.

"Thank you," Kazuko said as she stood, "Excuse me. I have to take this call."

Kazuko quickly made her way to the hallway and closed the door before she answered her phone.

"Hello," Kazuko greeted with a hushed tone. Kazuko felt as if her ear drums would burst when her sister's voice was heard loudly on the other end.

"LITTLE SISTER!"

"What is it?" Kazuko snapped angrily.

"Did you forget you had a Dance recital this evening?" Kazuko sighed heavily as she massaged her temple. She did forget. She had tried to make up for ditching Kyoko and Hana but she couldn't start ditching her responsibilities too.

"I'll be on my way," Kazuko said as she pressed the end button before her sister had a chance to rebuttal. Kazuko opened the door to Tsuna's room then quickly retrieved her purse and coat.

"I'm sorry," Kazuko said hurriedly, "I have to go. I forgot to do something important today. It was nice meeting you all!"

Kazuko bowed deeply before closing the door abruptly, cutting off everyone's short goodbyes, and making her way downstairs. She hurried to the door, slid her shoes on, and left.

Kazuko barely had her coat on and buttoned before she made a break down the empty and chilly street. She ran as fast as she could, her hair flying in the breeze. She was going to get scolded by her sister once she got there. Her sister was very particular about tardiness, which irritated Kazuko since her sister was always late too.

As Kazuko ran her eyes caught a glimpse of something, it was a person. Kazuko's eyes locked with steel gray eyes. It was him. The boy she met a few weeks ago. Kazuko had been running so fast her legs wouldn't allow her to even stop to acknowledge him. But he was watching her as she watched him. Kazuko ran past the boy and she felt like her heart was going to burst. Maybe it was because she was running so quickly, but this feeling was different. Maybe she was just overexerting herself, she did wake up pretty early.


	10. Chapter 10

Kazuko sighed as she looked at the music notes on her song sheet. Yet another weekend of rehearsals and yet another singing performance at her school. Kazuko felt drained as she made her way home in the cool autumn air. It wasn't long before school started and autumn grew closer and closer. All of the tree's leaves were falling and the nights came quicker. The sun was high in the sky but she knew it would be setting soon. Kazuko breathed outwardly. She loved summer. The summer breaks, the beach, the cool drinks, the sun, everything. She was silently praying it would come soon.

She was very sick of performing but her merits at school were very important. They determined which school she got into in the future. But if she were truthfully honest she hated her school. It was all about good grades, perfection, and abilities that someone could profit from. She couldn't stand it. Kazuko reached into her pink gym bag and pulled out her phone and a pair of headphones. She needed to practice her solo and nail every note and lyric by the following weekend. She had to perform in front of the entire school _again_. Kazuko found the song on her phone and pressed play. She let the music play and end.

Once the song ended she rewound it, this time singing along.

 _Yuuyake ga machi wo somete_

 _Hitori aruku kaerimichi_

 _Natsukashii kaze ga fuki_

 _Kimi no koto omoidashiteru_

 _Aitakute aenai mama de_

 _Toki dake ga sugite iku no_

 _Kirakira hikaru futatsu hoshi yo_

 _Yurayura tooku michibiite yuku_

 _Kimi mo onaji sora wo miage_

 _Watashi no koto wo omou deshou ka_

 _Yuruyaka na kono michi wa_

 _Kimi no moto e iku no kana_

 _Itsu datte kimi no tonari ni_

 _Itai to tada inotteta_

 _Aitakute aenai mama de_

 _Yume dake ga kiete iku no_

 _Kirakira hikaru futatsu hoshi yo_

 _Harahara namida koborete yuku_

 _Futari sugoshita hibi wo motome_

 _Kimi mo ano hi wo negau deshou ka_

 _Unmei wa watashi to kimi wo meguriawasete kureta_

 _Sore na noni watashi to kimi wa musubarenai no_

 _Kirakira hikaru futatsu hoshi yo_

 _Yurayura tooku michibiite yuku_

 _Kimi mo onaji sora wo miage_

 _Watashi no koto wo omou deshou ka_

 _Hoshi-tachi ni kakomarete_

 _Hitori aruku kaerimichi-_

Just as her song was ending Kazuko bumped into something, rather someone. Causing her bag fell off her shoulder, spilling everything to the ground.

"I'm so sorry," Kazuko apologized frantically as she pulled her headphones from her ears and began to pulling everything inside her bag. She must have forgotten to rezip it after taking out her headphones. She felt embarrassed. Her extra underwear, leotards, and her mesh skirts had spilled onto the ground.

As Kazuko began to sloppily pull everything in her bag she noticed the person standing in front of her was wearing black shoes, shoes a student normally wore. As Kazuko's eyes slowly traveled upward her heart began to pound. The person was wearing black pants and was clearly a boy, most girls didn't wear this type of attire.

Kazuko's eyes finally landed on the face of the person she had bumped into and she swallowed. It was him. That disciplinary committee member. Kazuko pulled everything in her bag and quickly stood, looking the boy directly in his eyes and he was looking into hers.

"It's you again," Kazuko said quietly. Her palms were beginning to sweat. Kazuko suddenly bowed, letting her hair curtain her pink face.

"I'm Kazuko Kurokawa and I want to thank you," she began, "For last tim-"

"Which school do you attend?" Before she could even finish her apology he had cut her off, causing her to stand straight up, meeting his gaze once more. She said nothing at first. She was distracted. He was quite a handsome boy. She had not seen someone so handsome, her own age anyway. Normally boys her age weren't neatly groomed, didn't know how to make direct eye contact when they spoke to her, or they were too shy to talk to her. But him, he had an air about him.

But she still felt as though he was a bit odd. When she first saw him he had tonfas, weapons. Why would someone his age need serious weapons to fight people? Kazuko's eyes traveled to his hands, they weren't there today. Not to mention she had forgotten his name. Now, she was curious. When he got a bit closer Kazuko snapped out of her thoughts, remembering his question from a moment ago.

"I go to Namimidori Academy." He stopped his advances. Kazuko felt her breathing speed up when she realized how close he really was. When she bounced off him she had moved back a few steps. Yet he had gotten so close she was almost looking up at him because she was starting to make eye contact with his chest. It was quiet. The only thing she could hear was her own heart, which was thumping loudly for some reason. Then she noticed he had a sly smirk on his face. He looked like a prince...then he did it...with a huge smirk on his lips he lifted his left hand and looped around his little finger was a pair of panties.

"Yellow lace, huh?" Kazuko felt a searing red heat burn its way up from her feet to the top of her head. She could have sworn steam was coming from her ears. Kazuko was frozen for a moment before she went to reach for them but he had the audacity to hold them above her, his smirk turning into a full blown grin. Suddenly Kazuko heard a small voice.

"Ah, youth," said an elderly man walking past them with a cane. Someone had seen them. This was extremely embarrassing. Was this a game to him?! Kazuko tried to grab them but they were just barely in her reach.

"Excuse me," Kazuko shouted, still a scarlet red, "what do you think you're doing?!"

"You crowded in front of me," he said and Kazuko felt like she was being buried by a ton of bricks. That didn't make any sense!

"What are you talking about?" Then it hit her. Was he talking about when she saw him a few weeks ago? He was mad about that?! Kazuko sighed heavily.

"Okay, I'm really really sorry so can you just-"

"You're from that all girl school, Namimidori, so you don't know the rules around here," he suddenly began to explain, "don't ever crowd in front of me. Next time you cross me I'll bit-"

 _"Rinvii!_ _"_ Kazuko shouted, her voice very high-pitched. Kazuko gasped and covered her mouth with her hands. When Kazuko got a little too flustered she would quickly revert to speaking Italian. It was an old habit she couldn't break as she got older since she grew up in Italy. The boy, Kyoya, blinked at her with a dull but intrigued look in his eyes. When he tried to take another step closer Kazuko had decided she had enough. She quickly jumped, grabbing the underwear, maneuvered around him, then ran away. She ran as fast as she could, trying to get home.

He was definitely not a prince.

As she ran home, Kazuko was completely unaware of a smirking Kyoya Hibari who had a glint of amusement in his gray eyes.


	11. Chapter 11

Kazuko wasn't sure how Kyoko had roped her into coming with her but she did. Kazuko was just finishing her breakfast when Kyoko had called and asked her to come out with her today. Kazuko thought about it first but, to be honest, she really didn't want to. Especially after she said they were about to meet up with her friend Tsuna and two of his friends she hadn't met before. But today Yuzu was making it increasingly hard to stay home. Yuzuhira was trying to have her sister try on her old clothes to see if she wanted to get rid of anything, however, that always turned into a game of dress up real fast.

So, reluctantly, Kazuko got dressed and headed out. It was a bit cooler again today. Kazuko had on a long sleeve white and black striped scoop neck shirt, a high waisted black ruffled skirt, a black knit hat, black knee-high socks, black leather ankle boots, and a black leather coat.

When Kazuko met up with Kyoko she had assumed she was alone, but she wasn't. Next to her was a baby. In fact, she knew that baby. She remembered him being introduced as Reborn.

"Good Morning, Kazuko," Kyoko greeted.

"Good morning," Kazuko nodded to the two.

"Caio-su, Kazuko," Reborn greeted, "Are you ready to do something fun?"

Kazuko blinked before she kneeled down to his size. This baby was fascinating.

"Something fun?" Kazuko asked, curious, "and what would that be?"

"I don't know either but Reborn convinced me and told me to invite you too," Kyoko explained with a smile

Kazuko blinked again as she stared at the baby. She had just noticed his attire. He was wearing a baseball glove with his name sewed in the front and his clothes were a baseball. Instead of answering her the baby simply smirked. The promise in his eyes reassured her something special. Kazuko sighed. Despite his weird costume she actually thought this would be fun.

"Sure," she gave in as she stood, "Why not. I'm not doing anything else today."

* * *

When the three of them got to their destination Kazuko was a bit surprised when she saw they were at Namimori Middle School. Reborn had led them to the school's baseball field where they met up with Tsuna and two other boys she had never met before. The two boys seemed to be doing some weird form of exercise while Tsuna was watching with a confused look on his face. Reborn was the first to greet them.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," Tsuna turned to Reborn and became completely perplexed.

"Wh-What is that outfit suppose to be?!"

Kazuko and Kyoko walked behind Reborn. Kyoko carried a smile as they appeared, while Kazuko continued to stare at the odd boys.

"Good morning, Tsuna," Kyoko greeted brightly.

"Ky-Kyoko and Kazuko," Tsuna seemed very surprised when he saw them. Kazuko gave a slight wave to him, "Why are you guys here?"

"Reborn told me that you guys were doing something fun and Reborn told me to invite Kazuko along too," Kyoko explained again, and quickly Tsuna squatted down to scold him.

"Don't get them involved in this!," Tsuna shouted visibly irritated.

"School is off because it's Founder's Day," Reborn explained, "It won't be very exciting if we don't have an audience."

"But what if _something_ happens?" Tsuna said lowly. Kazuko scowled a bit. What did he mean by that?

"You'll just have to protect them, then," Reborn rebutted. Tsuna looked dumbfounded. He sighed and stood up straight as the two boys walked over to them.

"Good morning, Yamamoto and Gokudera," Kyoko said as she side stepped and held her hand out in front of Kazuko as if she were presenting something. "This is Kazuko Kurokawa. She goes to Namimidori Academy and she's Hana Kurokawa's cousin."

"Nice to meet you," the dark-haired boy said energetically. He was handsome. He was a fairly tall boy with short, spiky black hair and large brown eyes. He wore a blue and white sweat suit and a black t-shirt with blue and white sneakers, "I'm Takeshi Yamamoto."

"Mornin'," the other boy said. He didn't seem as pleasant as the first boy, Yamamoto. He was of average height and had long hair is silver that reached just below his ears. He wore a purple buttoned up shirt with a black jacket, black jeans, and black sneakers.

Since he didn't introduce himself Kazuko assumed he was the person Kyoko called Gokudera.

"Are you here for training too?," Yamamoto asked with a big grin, "Hey Tsuna, is she joining our mafia game-"

Before he could finish his question Tsuna had placed his hands over Yamamoto's mouth, muffling out anything else Yamamoto had said. Kazuko blinked.

 _Training? Mafia game?_

"Re-Reborn why don't you start now?!" Tsuna said rather loudly. Reborn quickly disregarded his costume and made his way to a white square. It was the catcher's square. Behind the square was a very large cement wall that was topped with a large fence. At the very base of the wall was a big circle with an X mark on it. Yamamoto and Gokudera made their way on to the square Reborn was on.

Kazuko, Tsuna, and Kyoko all lined up side by side on the other end of the wall, away from the X mark.

These people were very odd yet intriguing. If they were doing some sort of training what kind of training was it?

"We'll start with Yamamoto," Reborn stated plainly. This, for some reason, irritated the Gokudera boy.

"Reborn! Start with me!" Reborn was quick to silence him.

"Impatience won't make you stronger." Gokudera frowned heavily and remained quiet as Reborn turned his attention back to Yamamoto, but not before taking out an oddly small baseball from nowhere.

"Yamamoto, throw this thing." Yamamoto reached down and grabbed the ball from the baby.

"Cute little ball," Yamamoto said with a chuckle. The ball was so small he could hold it between his index finger and thumb.

"Aim for that wall." Reborn turned Yamamoto's attention to the wall, pointing directly at the X mark.

"Okay," Yamamoto obeyed and placed himself directly on the white square, facing the wall. Kazuko glanced at Kyoko when she heard her speak.

"So the "something fun" was baseball practice?" Kyoko giggled. Kazuko's eye then landed on Tsuna, who looked rather worried.

"I hope so..." Tsuna whispered. Kazuko turned her attention back to Yamamoto. What was Tsuna so worried about? It did seem to look like just an ordinary training session.

Suddenly Yamamoto's face dawned a very concentrated expression before he got into position and threw the ball. The ball was going very, very fast. But Kazuko's eyes widened when she noticed steel spikes appear from within the ball. When the ball hit the wall Kazuko let out a gasp. The wall had exploded. Debris and smoke flew everywhere.


	12. Chapter 12

Once the debris and smoke all dissipated Kazuko saw Tsuna run toward Reborn who was standing quietly with a smirk on his face.

"Hey!," Tsuna shouted, "What did you make him throw?!"

Reborn pulled a baseball from nowhere again and brought it before Tsuna's eyes.

"This was developed by the Vongola Planning and Development Division.," Reborn explained, "It's a bullet ball that can shatter rocks. I call it the Micro Hammer."

"You're trying to give Yamamoto a weapon?"

At this point Kazuko was confused. Reborn and Tsuna were talking about something. Kazuko turned to Kyoko who was pleasantly smiling at the group of boys. As Tsuna finished his rant to the baby Yamamoto started whispering to Tsuna. Yamamoto shared a laugh before Tsuna walked over the wall and kneeled down to pick up a broken piece. The look on his face was utter dismay while Kyoko walked up next to him smiling. Two seconds hadn't even walked by before she saw something scurrying across the ground.

It was a baby. The baby had hair that was styled into a massive afro, wearing horns on both sides of its head, and its outfit covered most of its body, consisting of a cowhide pattern and tail. The baby said nothing as it hopped around. These people were a circus. Then it hit her. This was what Hana was talking about! The loud explosions, the lack of sleep, and the random weird characters that always popped up. It was all making sense.

Kazuko was still skeptical of her own train of thought until half a second later. She was so lost in thought she hadn't even noticed everyone was grouped together, talking to one another. What caught her attention was a loud whistle that echoed from Reborn.

Right then Yamamoto jumped back and an explosion had taken place where Yamamoto was just standing. Then suddenly the ground was rumbling and a loud rattling noise was heard. Kazuko turned to the direction of the noise, as the smoke and debris cleared, and what she saw almost made her head for the hills.

It was a tank. An actual tank.

"Wh-what?!"

"Wh-What is that?"

Kazuko and Tsuna had very similar reactions and shouted in unison as the tank got closer.

"A pitching machine," Reborn replied. Kazuko snapped her head in his direction as Tsuna reacted accordingly.

"It's obviously a tank!"

The tank came to a screeching halt and slowly a hatch was opened, revealing a blonde haired man. A young man with blonde hair and brown eyes. He wore a green-and-black jacket over a white shirt with beige wording.

"It's been a while, Tsuna." The young man greeted.

"Dino?!" Tsuna shouted. There was another weird person! They were actually popping up out of nowhere. The biggest issue was that all of this seemed _normal_ to them! The only person batting an eye or even questioning these people was Tsuna.

"Thanks for coming." Reborn greeted. The man smiled at him.

"No sweat," the young man said as he slid back inside the tank and closed the hatch once more.

"You need to dodge the balls this pitching machine fires," Reborn said to Yamamoto. Yamamoto had an eager look on his face before he spoke.

"That sounds like fun." He chuckled, "Give it to me."

On cue, the tank began to charge straight for Yamamoto. Yamamoto quickly made a run for it in another direction while the tank continuously fired.

"This is like playing war!" Yamamoto shouted as he dodged every shot. Everyone was watching him in awe.

"He couldn't possibly be having fun," Kazuko said as her eye twitched involuntarily.

"People who enjoy fighting will become stronger," Reborn replied. Gokudera, however, didn't seem convinced. He scoffed and turned his head. He seemed to be a bit jealous at the lack of attention from Tsuna. She wasn't sure what kind of relationship he and Tsuna had but even Kazuko could tell Tsuna and Reborn were praising Yamamoto more than Gokudera. Kazuko felt a little sympathy for him, even though she just met him.

"But what if he gets hit?" Tsuna asked, bringing her from her thoughts. He seemed to be talking to Reborn.

"That'll be the end," he replied. Kazuko mentally fell flat on her face. What kind of trainer was he?!

Then a loud voice and cackle were suddenly heard. Kazuko looked down and saw a baby that was dressed as a cow.

"Here's Lambo!" the baby shouted, "I'm going to join in the fun!" Kazuko blinked and then where the baby was standing there was a small stake of smoke. Once the smoke was gone the baby was nowhere to be seen.

"Watch out for stray shots," Reborn said nonchalantly. He wasn't even slightly concerned about the other baby's well being, "Let's go, Gokudera."

"So it's my turn!" Gokudera shouted,"All right!"

Kazuko saw Reborn looking up at the pumped Gokudera but she could see a michiveious smirk appearing on the babies face.

From the short time they spent together that day she could tell that meant nothing good.


	13. Chapter 13

Kazuko, Kyoko, Tsuna, Gokudera, and Reborn had made their way to the Home Ec Room inside the school building. Kyoko, Kazuko, and Tsuna were sitting at a large lab counter closest to the door. Reborn was standing on a desk in front of a board that had a taped picture of a Venn diagram on it, while Gokudera sat in the middle of the class on a stool.

"The three basic attributes of fighting are speed, stamina, and power," Reborn said, explaining the diagram behind him. Kazuko leaned on the table with her elbows on the table and her face in her hand. This at least seemed normal and easier than what they were doing outside. Which, of course, was still going on. Reborn turned his attention to the window when a loud explosion was heard and a large cloud of smoke appeared by the window, "Yamamoto is training all three at the same time."

Gokudera stood with both fist in the air, "Then I'll also-".

"But every person has his own appropriate way to train," Reborn interrupted, "It's useless to do the same thing as him."

Gokudera sighed, defeated. Kazuko pursed her lips. She really felt bad for him. He looked tough and had a bad attitude about him but she could tell he had a kind heart.

"We'll start with speed," Reborn began, "Whether attacking or defending, speed is critical."

Kazuko didn't know when she started listening to Reborn but she had been. And for some reason, she was taking everything he was saying into account.

"Should I take notes?" Kyoko asked as she turned to Tsuna.

"You don't need to," Tsuna answered quietly, "But I'm glad this turned out to be a normal lesson." Kazuko nodded in agreement. She didn't think she could go another round with tank lessons.

"Do you know what you should do?" Reborn asked Gokudera, who had a serious look on his face. Gokudera thought to himself with a slight hum before he answered uncertainly.

"Practice sprinting?" Gokudera asked, his head bowed a bit.

"That's why you're so weak," Reborn said abruptly, " The key here is air resistance."

"Air Resistance?," Tsuna and Kyoko answered in unison and they both seemed confused and honestly so was Kazuko.

"Well, just watch," Reborn said. Kazuko sighed heavily when she saw Reborn had transformed himself into what appeared to be a hair stylist. Reborn then proceeded to cut and style Gokudera's hair. After tons of snipping and combing, Reborn finished.

"Hmm, not bad."

Gokudera's hair was shaped like a torpedo, covering Gokudera's entire face except for a small hole in the front.

" _What's this_?" Tsuna asked turning to Reborn.

"The ultimate hairstyle developed by the Vongola Family," Reborn answered, "It's called Zero Air Resistance."

"Not much of a name," Tsuna heckled, "And he can't see anything around him..."

"No, I can see through the slits," Gokudera defended. Tsuna looked uneasy as he watched his friend.

"You like it?" Tsuna asked, surprised. However, Gokudera didn't answer.

"This style takes time and isn't suited for combat," Reborn said, "it's a bad example, so don't try this."

The only person who hadn't fallen out of their chair was Kyoko. Once everyone recollected themselves Reborn changed his clothes and began his lecture again.

"We'll work on power enhancement next." Reborn was immediately interrupted by Tsuna.

"What about speed?" But Tsuna was even interrupted by Gokudera.

"Reborn!," Gokudera shouted, taking the baby's attention away from Tsuna.

"What is it?" Reborn asked the somewhat flustered boy.

"Isn't there a quicker way to train?" he asked. Reborn thought to himself for a second before he answered.

"It's not that there isn't," Reborn explained, "Humans only use 30% of their brains. But if you awaken the remaining 70%, you'll be powered-up into a superman. To accomplish that, you must be able to control your own brain."

It was just then a familiar presence entered the room. I-Pin hopped onto the table with a rather large white bowl. Gokudera turned his attention to the baby, surprised.

"Ramen?"

"How are you?" The cute little baby said gleefully.

"Gokudera needs to finish this bowl of ramen while enduring I-Pin's Gyoza Kempo."

Now Kazuko was lost. She had no idea what Reborn was talking about. Gyoza Kempo? What was that?

"What will that do?" Tsuna asked and Kazuko was glad. At least she wasn't the only one confused.

"The Gyoza Kempo directly affects the brain, causing muscles to move involuntarily. If he can eat ramen without succumbing to the Gyoza Kempo, he'll have mastered control of his brain," Kazuko wasn't convinced by this.

"Seriously?," Tsuna obviously wasn't either but Gokudera was.

"Boss, just watch me!," he raved, "I'll be sure to meet your expectations!"

"Uh, I'm not really expecting anything..." Tsuna said doubtfully.

"It's on!," Gokudera shouted as he grabbed a pair of chopsticks and breaking them apart.

"Understood," Kazuko was mystified as she watched I-Pin. She used some sort of organized hand motions and then released some sort of energy. Gokudera was just about to lift some of the ramen into his mouth before his hand began moving in a painful jerking motion. He said visibly strained, sweat was beginning to form on his face as he fought whatever I-Pin had done to him. He had failed. Gokudera straightened and readied himself again, "One more try!"

"I applaud your fighting spirit!," I-Pin encouraged as she repeated the hand motions and sent some form of energy toward Gokudera again. And again he succame to her...power? This time, however, Gokudera's face ended up in his bowl of ramen.

"Ow! That's hot!" Gokudera cried out re-emerging from his bowl.

"Gokudera! Are you okay?!" Tsuna shouted his concern loudly. While Gokudera waved his pain off.

"Tha-that was on purpose," he said nervously, "I-Pin, keep 'em coming!"

"I-I think you might want to-," Kazuko began but the boy looked at her and glared.

"Shut up!" Gokudera shouted as he focused on I-Pin.

Just as I-Pin was going to continue a loud thud was heard. Kazuko looked up in the direction it came from and saw the baby from earlier, squished against the window. Then she heard him mutter something with his lips pressed against the window.

"Let's play together," he said creepily. I-Pin, taken aback, let out a shrill cry.

"No! No!," I-Pin yelled as she released random bouts of energy everywhere. Kazuko swiftly dodged it by throwing herself onto the ground. Tsuna and Gokudera weren't so lucky. Tsuna's body, evidently, threw itself onto the table face up. Gokudera, under the same control, grabbed his ramen and dumped the bowl onto Tsuna's face. Tsuna struggled as he shouted.

"Tsuna, are you okay?"

"Water! Water! Water!," Tsuna yelled. And his cries rang through the entire school.


	14. Chapter 14

"I'm terribly sorry!," Gokudera bowed repeatedly at his boss who was laying on the ground in front of the desk Reborn was standing on. Kyoko had quickly brought a cold, wet towel and placed it over his face, "So very sorry!"

"Nah, it wasn't your fault," Tsuna said with a small smile as he sat up and pulled his towel off his face. Suddenly a window was heard opening.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Yamamoto asked. The blonde haired boy Kazuko saw earlier was with him, Tsuna called him Dino. "We could hear you screaming outside."

"Yamamoto, what a relief," Tsuna shouted, gleefully. He had a relieved look on his face.

"This guy's incredible," Dino complimented, "He can already dodge every shot."

"Well, it was pretty hard," Yamamoto said with a big grin.

"You're amazing, Yamamoto." Tsuna sighed. However, Gokudera didn't seem that happy, not at all. No one had noticed until he was at the door.

"Gokudera?" Tsuna called lowly.

"Leave him alone," Reborn said. Tsuna looked up at Reborn, concerned. Gokudera slid the door open and left. The room was silent and no one chased after him. Reborn was the one that broke the silence.

"Yamamoto, I have one more task," he said, jumping down from the desk.

They made their way outside and returned to where they started, the baseball field. When they finished gathering Reborn turned his attention to Yamamoto and handed him a bat he pulled from nowhere. Kazuko took this time to slither away from the group and made a run for the school gates.

She had enough for today. These crazy people had physically and mentally drained her. From tanks to babies with special powers, she was done. As Kazuko quickly made her way down the seemingly quiet streets someone had caught her eye. It was the boy from earlier, Gokudera. He looked sad, disappointed even. He was dragging his feet, his head was bowed, and his hands were in his pockets. Everything about him said miserable. Kazuko felt sorry for him, but it didn't stop her from running straight ahead and past his direction after she watched him turn a corner.

No, no, and no.

What was she going to say? She didn't even know this person's last name. How was she going to comfort him? Kazuko stopped in her tracks and could almost feel the tears flowing down her face when she realized she wasn't going home. She sighed loudly and swiftly turned. She went back to the corner he turned and sighed again. He was still walking, slowly, miserably. Kazuko slowly walked to his side but not before cursing herself mentally.

 _Idiot._


	15. Chapter 15

Kazuko sat on the empty swing next to Gokudera. When she started to talk to him he actually told her off and warned her to leave him alone. Kazuko almost didn't think twice about walking away, but she was an idiot. Eventually, he did start to crack. Especially after Kazuko asked him about his relation to Tsuna.

Kazuko was so confused when she heard him refer to Tsuna as "The Boss", but she just went with it. Gokudera told her he was Tsuna's right-hand man and his duties were to protect him at all costs. As they talked with one another, hours had gone by. Kazuko hadn't even realized the sun was beginning to set.

During their extensive conversation, Kazuko had discovered she was right. Gokudera Hayato had a nice side to him. Although, it was buried rather deep. He hadn't cheered up though and Kazuko felt like she hadn't said much. She was just listening and asking questions. Her questions were mostly about his friendship with Tsuna and shockingly he had become friends with Gokudera just a little while ago.

Kazuko stared up at the orange sky as they sat in silence. Gokudera still had that same expression on his face. Kazuko was tired now. She had to get him to go back or something. Kazuko turned to him. He looked so lonely. Did he even have a family or any other friends besides Tsuna?

Hmmm, maybe that was it? He didn't have anyone else. And maybe Tsuna praising his other friend some much today made him feel even lonelier. It was then Kazuko saw him sigh and talk, mainly to himself.

"I guess I'm meant to be alone."

"Shut up," Kazuko hadn't even meant to say it. She was blunt at times and most times she hadn't even meant to be. The boy turned to her, visibly irritated but she just continued before he had a chance to tell her off, "You're not alone. From what you've told me Tsuna is your closest and best friend. And you're his right-hand man."

Kazuko wasn't sure what she was doing but she kept going, "So what if you've failed...a few times. If you're not about to get back up you're giving up your position as his right-hand man. Is that what you want?"

The boy's angry look softened and as if on cue a voice called out to him.

"Gokudera?" Kazuko and Gokudera turned to the owner of the voice. Kazuko recognized her. It was a woman carrying a shopping bag but she remembered her from Tsuna's house. It was Tsuna's mother.

The woman nodded to Kazuko before turning back to Gokudera.

"What are you two doing here," she asked with a smile, "where is everyone else?"

"Um, well..." Gokudera turned his gaze to the ground.

"That Tsuna really depends on you, Gokudera," she said suddenly. This focused his gaze back on to Tsuna's mother, "He always talks about you. He mentions your name every day," she said with a small laugh. Kazuko watched a mixture of sadness and happiness appear on his face before he quickly stood.

"Forgive me, boss! I was wrong!" Kazuko watched the boy make a run toward the direction they came from. Kazuko stood and dusted herself off. She didn't know if it was Tsuna's mom or her that motivated him but as long as she could go home with a good conscious she didn't care.

"Thank you," Kazuko's eyes widened a bit when Tsuna's mother bowed to her and smiled happily. She must have heard their entire conversation.

Kazuko bowed to Tsuna's mother,"I should be getting home too."

With that, she made a dash toward home as Tsuna's mother waved her goodbye.

These people weren't that bad.


	16. Chapter 16

It had been almost a month or so since Kazuko had seen everyone. She was backed up by recitals and practices so she couldn't hang out with any of her newfound friends. Today, however, was a perfect day. Sort of. She was starting to feel a bit stressed but she was stuck at home with nothing to do. Kazuko had gotten a text from Kyoko to meet her at the school this morning. Kazuko almost shivered at the thought of going back to that place.

The crazy things that she had seen and couldn't forget. The memories played over and over for the past several weeks. Still, Kazuko smiled to herself. She couldn't deny she had fun that day they were all _training_. When Kazuko asked her if it was going to be a training session for someone like last time Kyoko said today was suppose to be different. Kyoko didn't go into detail though.

"Okay," Kazuko shouted as she grabbed the doorknob, "I'll see you guys lat-"

"LITTLE SISTER!" Kazuko barely dodged her sister's suffocating hug. Yuzuhira, as graceful as she sometimes pretended to be, slammed face first into the door. Kazuko sighed and waited for her sister to recover. Once Yuzuhira stood and dusted herself off Kazuko deemed her fine and began to open the door but her sister began again.

"Wait!" Yuzuhira shouted as she stood in front of Kazuko, "Let me go with you!"

Kazuko froze then narrowed her eyes. She hadn't even noticed at first but Yuzuhira looked as if she were going somewhere. Her long silver hair wasn't pulled into its usual ponytail but a messy bun instead. She wore an off the shoulder blue sweater under a tan hooded jacket, gray jeans, and a pair of gray knee high boots.

"No," Kazuko swore she could hear her sister's heart literally shattering, "I"m going to hang out with my friends-"

Before she even fully explained Yuzuhira had already made big watery eyes and started to sniffle.

"The rebellious teenage years have begun I see," Yuzuhira overemphasized her despair as she slid to her knees, clutching her heart. Kazuko became quickly annoyed.

"You'd be the oldest one there!" Kazuko shouted, "Don't you think that's weird?!"

"Dear, please don't shout," Kazuko sighed her irritation rising as her mother waltzed down the large iron, spiraling staircase. It wasn't that her mother had irritated her more but she knew she'd take Yuzuhira's side like she normally did. She did that because the two could be twins, in personality. The twos appearance, however, was different.

Their mother had platinum blonde hair that was cut into a blunt bob just below her chin with blunt bangs laying perfectly on her forehead. Her skin was a golden peach and her eyes were a bright green. She was just built perfectly. She was in her forties but looked almost as young as Yuzuhira.

"Momma, Kazuko won't let me go out with her!" Yuzuhira sobbed. Kazuko rolled her eyes. This was ridiculous, her sister was ridiculous.

"Kazuko, let your sister tag along," her mother sighed. Kazuko groaned openly.

"Momma-," Kazuko began but she was interrupted by an intentionally loud Yuzuhira.

"Momma," Yuzuhira whined, "Kazuko is telling me I can't go with her because I'm too old."

Kazuko watched her mother cover her mouth and faintly gasped before she turned to whisper to Yuzuhira, "In her rebellious years already, huh?"

Yuzuhira nodded in agreement, "I'm not!" Kazuko shouted, startling the whispering pair. She bowed her head and turned back to the door, "Ok! Let's just go!"

"In that?," Yuzuhira said making a gesture to Kazuko's outfit. Kazuko wore a black, white, and red sweater under a black leather jacket, black jeans, black ankle combat boots, and black scarf with a matching hat.

"LET'S GO BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND!"Kazuko let out a loud aggravated sighed before she pulled the door open and stomped out, Yuzuhira smiling happily as she trailed behind her.

Kazuko hoped today would be a good day.


	17. Chapter 17

It was quiet in Namimori. The streets and buildings were blanketed by snow as far as the eye could see. It was rather cold as well. No one in their right minds would be out and about right now...

"So that's all of your friends huh?" Kazuko sighed as she glanced at her sister walking with her to Namimori Middle School. She had almost forgotten she was with her. She had been silent for a millisecond and that was a record. Kazuko had just finished telling her sister about her few friends and when she met them. She had already met Kyoko but only once.

"Well," Kazuko began, "We aren't really friends. They don't know anything about me and I don't know a thing about any of them, even Kyoko."

Kazuko didn't even realize it until just a short while ago. She didn't know Kyoko as great as she had initially thought. She knew she had a brother and that she had some whacky friends, besides Hana. Well, Hana could be whacky sometimes too.

"I see," Yuzuhira whispered. Kazuko was silent for a moment when a particular thought distracted her. Yuzuhira was very popular at school. But did she have friends? Now that she thought about it, she never actually seen her with anybody or on her phone. She was either at school, rehearsals or at home.

"Is this the place?," Yuzuhira's voice brought Kazuko from her thoughts. They were standing in front of the gates to the school. Kazuko nodded. They began making their way onto the school ground but Kazuko didn't know where to look. It was quiet. Was this really where she wanted to meet? Had she read Kyoko's text wrong?

Just then loud voices and shouting were suddenly heard. It was Tsuna. She could recognize it quite well. It had a bit of a complaining inflection when he spoke sometimes.

"Are those your friends?" Yuzuhira seemed a bit excited as she began to make a beeline toward the voices. Kazuko stammered to tell her sister to wait but she was already out of sight. Kazuko followed her sister who ran behind the school building toward what appeared to be the track field.

As soon as her sister came into eyeshot she opened her mouth to call her. But Kazuko's eyes quickly locked on to something massive and green. Her mouth hung open in utter disbelief. It was a turtle. A green turtle. It was the same size as the school building and it was sleeping. Her sister was standing there, just staring at it, speechless. She honestly knew this would happen. Well, obviously not the giant turtle but something weird happening and not being able to explain it to her sister. Then, Kazuko's attention was caught by something else, something familiar. A voice.

"That was the plan, but I have Disciplinary Committee work to take care of."

Kazuko's olive eyes quickly found the source the voice and she felt the owner of those eyes staring right back at her. It was him.

Kyoya Hibari.

He was standing, holding a green ball with a face on it in his hand with a devious smirk on his lips. His eyes bore into hers before he spoke once more.

"Later." Kazuko watched him toss the green ball at Tsuna who she had just realized was sitting on the ground in front of him cowering in fear and holding what looked liked I-Pin as a shield. Kazuko watched him begin to walk away from them and leave the school grounds from the back gates. Kazuko noticed Reborn was standing not too far from Tsuna in a cave man costume and the only way she was able to notice that was because she was running. She had no idea she was even running and running in the direction of where he went.

Why? Why was she running after him? This person was a pervert. He all but molested her the second time they met. He was rude and had an arrogant air about him that resonated with her. So why? Why was so mesmerized by him? It wasn't like he was _perfect_ or anything.


	18. Chapter 18

Kazuko followed him silently. She wasn't sure how long she had been. He wasn't going anywhere near the school at this point. Kazuko waited for him to turn the corner before she ran after him.

Why was she following him? What was wrong with her? This person was obviously some sort of tyrant. So why was she so intrigued by him?

When Kazuko turned the corner she was swiftly halted. The boy, Kyoya Hibari, grabbed her as soon as she turned the corner and pressed her against a tall bricked wall. Before she could even let out so much as a yelp or even try to escape his hands were on either side of her head with his arms stretched out, trapping her. His gray eyes felt as if they would pierce through her and his smirk practically shouted his amusement.

"So it was you," he said in a low voice. His warm breath fluttered across her cheeks. Suddenly his left hand slowly moved to pinch a lock of her hair. She was quiet as she never broke her stare. She felt him touching her but, she was entranced by his eyes. His hand slowly slipped from her hair, then he used the tips of his fingers to trace her neck, stopping at her beauty mark on the lower part of her neck.

For a second his hand had stopped but then it continued. Down her shoulder, down her arm, down her side, then into her front pocket. Kazuko snapped out of her trance just before she could stop him from pulling her cell phone from her front pants pocket. He leaned away from her. Then his thumb and eyes flickered over the screen as if he was searching for something.

"Give it back," Kazuko said as she tried to take it from his grasp. He, however, moved a step back, his eyes locked on her phone.

"Kazuko Kurokawa," she was stunned a bit when he said her name. She didn't think he remembered it. He played with her name as if testing to hear how it sounded. His gray eyes slowly peered up from her phone and onto her. His eyes danced as he looked her up and down. She felt uncomfortable. His gaze felt as if it were seeing through her.

"Why are you following me?" Kazuko cursed to herself. Why was she following him again? Now she seemed like a stalker. She really needed to rethink her decisions lately.

Kazuko said nothing, unsure what to say. What was she going to say? He interested her and she was curious. She turned her eyes to an undisturbed patch of snow. It was quiet and he didn't seem like the type who'd let her leave well enough alone, plus he had her phone. What was she going to do, run?

"Here," Kazuko turned to him and saw his hand was extended with her phone. He still had a smirk on his lips as he watched her. Kazuko, hesitant, reached for her phone. When he didn't make an attempt to move she placed her hand over his and slowly removed her hand. She didn't want to admit it but she liked the way her hand felt when their skin touched.

Once she had her phone he turned and walked away. Then he was gone. After a minute or two had passed Kazuko let out a heavy and long sigh. She hadn't even realized she was breathing irregularly. Then she placed her hand over her heart. She hadn't even noticed her heart was pounding. She looked down at her phone.

What was wrong with her?

Kazuko turned and began to make her way back to the school. She forgot about everyone and Yuzuhira for a moment. Kazuko hoped no one said anything too strange to her before she got back. Still, Kazuko couldn't say she wasn't confused. She glanced back to where he disappeared. He didn't seem like the type of person you left a conversation from unscathed. Just then Kazuko felt her phone vibrate in her hand.

Her olive colored eyes widened and she swallowed. Her phone displayed a text message she had just received and she was dismayed.

 _See you around,_ the name displayed read; Kyoya Hibari.


	19. Chapter 19

Kazuko wasn't sure what she had walked in on at this point but she knew it wasn't good. Yuzuhira was holding the cow baby in her arms and cuddling it as it laughed gleefully. In front of her were Kyoko, Haru, Yamamoto, Gokudera, Reborn, I-Pin, and a badly bruised Tsuna. She could tell her sister was making her rounds in getting to know everyone. As Kazuko walked onto the school ground she could see a few new faces slowly emerging from the snow like zombies. Kazuko was sure she'd meet them in a few minutes and get to know them along with their odd personalities. When Yuzuhira noticed her she waved her over quickly.

"Where did you run off to?" Yuzuhira asked as she placed the baby dressed as a cow on the ground. Kazuko sighed inwardly. She couldn't possibly tell her why she ran off. So she could only change the subject.

"What is everybody doing?" Kazuko asked, joining the forming circle.

"We had a snowball fight," Kyoko giggled. She seemed as happy and bubbly as always. So that's what they were all doing. Kazuko sighed. That's what they had invited her to do but she had missed it. Kazuko couldn't lie she was disappointed. That actually sounded like fun. And as everybody gathered around it seemed like they were getting ready to leave. "We're going to go eat at that new Italian restaurant downtown, your sister invited us."

Kazuko blinked. Several times. Out to eat? With everyone?!

Kazuko turned to her happy go lucky sister who was smiling at her. Her smile was filled with promises of a good time that Kazuko was sure were not to come.

"Yea," Yuzuhira said sheepishly, " I felt bad because we missed all the fun. So I figured we could at least treat everyone to eat."

"Don't just decide things on your own-"

Before Kazuko could even begin her protest everyone was staring at them with literal hearts in their eyes.

"Giuseppe's?! That's Italian Cuisine," Tsunami shouted, astonished, "Isn't that the five-star restaurant they just built?!"

Haru nodded, equally amazed, "It's always booked. You can't get a table unless you make it six months in advance. My parents tried to once."

"I've heard of that place, " Kyoko said in agreement, "It's a real fancy place."

Kazuko knew this would happen. Her sister was very popular for a reason. She knew how to talk to people and made friends easily. The reason she didn't want Yuzuhira to come was that she knew she'd somehow make better friends with everyone than she could, she was jealous. Her sister did this often.

"Yuzuhira," Kazuko crossed her arms, "I don't think anybody would like-"

"I'm in," Kyoko suddenly said then surely everyone began to chime in.

"I guess I'll go to..." Tsuna sighed as he glanced over at Kyoko.

"If the boss goes so do I!" Gokudera blurted. Yamamoto chuckled and grinned brightly, "Sounds like fun!"

"I-Pin wants to go!" the baby shouted. The cow baby was right behind her practically drooling his agreement, "Lambo too!

"What about you?" Reborn said looking over his shoulder at a woman with purple hair standing in front of a group of men in black suits and the blonde man she saw last time.

"Of course, Reborn," the woman said as she scooped up Reborn, "It'll be like a date."

Kazuko couldn't help but feel a little uncomfortable by the woman. He was a baby. What kind of woman was she? Maybe she was another weird friend?

"What about you guys?" Reborn asked, this time talking to the blonde man and the men behind him.

"Sure," he said, smiling.

"Perfect," Yuzuhira said with her hands clasped together, "I have someone who owes me a favor so we-"

Kazuko watched her usually composed sister suddenly stop. Her eyes widened and her lips were slightly parted. She was staring at someone who Kazuko didn't really know but was barely introduced to. The blond hair boy blinked as he watched her. He looked just as confused as Kazuko did.

"You-," she began, stammering, "Do I know you?"

The boy pointed to himself, still blinking rapidly.

"Me?"

Yuzuhira nodded. She stayed silent. The look in her sister's eyes was rare. She was one hundred percent serious. Kazuko was actually a bit worried.

"I don't think so," he chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his head, "My name's Dino."

Slowly Yuzuhira began to smile brightly.

"I'm sorry, it must be my mistake," Yuzuhira giggled, easing the tension in the atmosphere, "Shall we all go. I have a limo on its way."

When everyone heard the word "limo" they instantly began to chatter to one another, expressing their excitement. Yuzuhira definitely had a way of showing up and showing out. Kazuko could tell her sister had this planned. As everyone began dusting excess snow from themselves and making their way toward the school gates, chatting, Kazuko continued to watch her sister. She was eerily quiet as she led everyone to their awaiting vehicle.

But Kazuko still felt a bit worried. Her sister was acting strange, even for her. After only a few minutes of waiting the long black sleek vehicle halted in front of the school. As everyone began to pile into the limo Kazuko could still sense her sister's uneasy vibe. Once everybody was sitting in the vehicle talking and expressing their admiration Kazuko noticed Yuzuhira's attentive gaze was focused on the blonde man, Dino. Her eyes held an emotion in them she had never seen before. More and more interesting things were happening and she was sure there was yet to come.

* * *

A/N: Sorry I haven't posted in two weeks. The next few chapters will be boring before the story begins to pick up. Sorry in advance!


	20. Chapter 20

A/N: Excuse me for not updating as frequently. I've been hella busy! So please be patient with me guys! I hope you guys will be enjoying the story as it progresses. Also, don't forget Kazuko and Yuzuhira's story isn't currently in the present. Kazuko is remembering how they got to where they are, which was dinner with a disguised Reborn and I'll let you know when the story becomes current again.

Thanks and Sorry for any confusion!

* * *

The night had gone just as planned. When they finally arrived at Giuseppe's the other occupants' eyes were on them instantly. It was a beautifully designed five-star restaurant filled with A-list celebrities, doctors, politicians, etc. Yet a bunch of teenagers, kids, and a few off-putting adults were piling in. Yuzuhira was quite surprised herself that Kazuko had made so many friends so quickly. Especially, considering her sister could be quite the introvert. Yuzuhira had gotten a very large table at the back of the restaurant, away from everyone else as not to disturb them.

Everyone seemed extremely pleased with their surroundings as the waitress showed them to their large table. They glanced around eagerly while talking amongst themselves. Yuzuhira was sitting next to Kazuko at the end of the table. But as happy as everyone was Yuzuhira was perplexed about the man sitting across the table in front of her, Dino. Yuzuhira felt like she had seen a ghost when she first saw him. And she no idea why. She was sure she had never met this man before. He seemed just a tad bit older than her but she got a very familiar feeling from him. He was a tall, young man with blonde hair that reached just the top of his shoulders and warm brown eyes.

He was very, very handsome. So much so that she was actually put off guard by it. However, when she got a complete look at him her breath would leave her and her heart felt as if it had skipped quite a few beats. Just who was he?

Dino had been talking to Tsuna, the boy she introduced herself to after Kazuko ditched her for a few moments. She walked up to the boy but he was running around with a child in his hands, before tossing it away. Yuzuhira went to scold the boy and check on the child but Tsuna quickly ran to her and tackled her to the ground. Well, it wasn't really a tackle. He was running to her and had tripped, knocking her down to the cold ground.

Then suddenly there was an explosion, exactly where he had thrown the baby. Once Tsuna had decided it was safe he stood up and held his hand out for Yuzuhira. He apologized profusely and came up with an excuse for what he was doing. Something about how that wasn't a baby he threw it was a toy that had bad batteries and exploded.

Yuzuhira obviously didn't believe him. The "toy" looked just like the little girl that was dusting herself off from where he had thrown it. It might have sounded odd but she was sure the child had something to do with the explosion.

However, she didn't want to come off crazy to these people, she had an impression to make after all. Quickly, Yuzuhira introduced herself to everyone. And boy, was it a lot of people. As the evening progressed Yuzuhira noticed they all seemed as if they were friends with Tsuna and that's how their relationships spawned with one another. Yuzuhira was guessing that's what happened with Kazuko as well.

It wasn't long before the waiter came and took everyone's order. While everyone was conversating, and some of the boys were arguing for some reason, Kazuko was sitting quietly observing everyone. Her sister could be so dull sometimes. Kazuko was gorgeous. Yuzuhira remembered seeing her for the first time after her mother gave birth to her and even well before she began to bud into a beautiful young lady. But sheesh, she needed to learn to open up more and hold actual conversations with people.

That was why Yuzuhira secretly came along. She knew for a fact her sister was going to completely bomb the opportunity to make new friends. So she was here to help. Kazuko made it obvious that she knew nothing of her friends so Yuzuhira was determined to have her sister at least be somewhat knowledgeable about her friends and vice versa.

Yuzuhira began a game around the table. The rules of the game were simple. Everyone had to tell at least three important facts about themselves and anybody could ask any questions they wanted about the three facts only. Yuzuhira ignored the dagger-like gaze sent in her direction. Kazuko was glaring at her. She knew this was going to be a bit of a challenge, but she was ready. Kazuko didn't like being put on the spot but it was the only way to break her out of her shell.

Yuzuhira went first. She told everyone she was born in Japan but Italian, she was also a great cook, and she wanted to be a chef. Everyone marveled as their questions bubbled up. Yuzuhira then turned to Kazuko and declared it was her turn. Kazuko blushed for a moment before she cleared her throat before she spoke. Kazuko told everyone she was born in Italy but she still spoke fluent Japanese, she was a great dancer, but she wanted to be a singer.

However, they never got a chance to finish the game because Tsuna became rather intrigued.

"Y-you both were born in Italy?" Tsuna asked, his eyes wide.

"Yes-I mean no," Kazuko murmured, " I was born in Italy. Our father is Italian and our mother is Japanese. Yuzuhira is four years older than me and she was born in Japan. They were visiting Italy when momma had me."

"Where in Italy?" This time the blonde boy, Dino, seemed intrigued as he spoke with raised eyebrows.

"Rome," Yuzuhira answered as she turned her gaze to meet his. Suddenly something in his eyes grew as he stared at her. It was like his gaze was full of realization. But of what? His gaze was very intense as he stared at her and Yuzuhira blinked before she turned to Tsuna and Kazuko who had been talking about something else.

" _Siamo anche dall'Italia_ ," The entire table turned to Reborn when he spoke. Yuzuhira couldn't say she wasn't shocked.

"Y-you're Italian?" Yuzuhira asked, the baby. The baby nodded with a smirk on his face.

"Actually," he began, "Almost all of us are, except Yamamoto, Haru, Ryohei, Kyoko, I-Pin, and Tsuna." Yuzuhira was introduced to them all earlier and she didn't get the slightest inkling that half of them were Italian. Yuzuhira could tell Kazuko hadn't either, her surprised expression proved it.

Yuzuhira was sure she and Kazuko had the same expressions on their faces. The baby then grinned before he spoke, loudly.

"We are members of the mafia."

"M-mafia?" Suddenly Tsuna grabbed Reborn and covered his mouth. Tsuna smiled and laughed nervously.

"He-he's just pretendi-" Reborn opened his mouth and bit Tsuna's finger, causing him squeal in pain and drop him onto the table. Yuzuhira eyed the baby curiously. _The mafia_. Something about that word in particular resonated deep within her. That word made her want to remember something. She felt like she was forgetting something. Something important.

Yuzuhira noticed everyone laughing heartedly at the two. Her eyes glanced around the table and halted at warm brown eyes that were staring attentively at her, Dino, again. Yuzuhira smiled gently before clearing her throat.

"What do you mean?" This time it was Kazuko who spoke. Her olive colored eyes were transfixed on the baby. "The mafia?"

"Oh," Haru said, "He says that all the time. He even said that when we first met."

"Yeah," Yamamoto laughed, "It's a game we play! It's fun!"

Kazuko slowly nodded at them but turned back to meet Reborn's gaze. Their gaze was intense as they stared at each other, Yuzuhira could practically feel the electricity flying across the table. The atmosphere was a bit thick.

"W-well, anyway," Yuzuhira said a bit loudly, "We used to live in a small town in Rome. But it's funny me and Kazuko are kind of two different nationalities." Yuzuhira laughed a bit and that seemed to draw the focus back to the subject prior.

"Different nationalities?," Tsuna asked perplexed. Yuzuhira nodded before she began to explain, "Since I was born in Japan I'm used to eating Japanese food and observing Japanese culture. Kazuko, on the other hand, was born in Italy so she eats Italian food and observes Italian culture."

Yuzuhira smiled brightly, "It's almost like we aren't even sisters."

Everyone smiled and laughed just as Kyoko spoke.

"That sounds so cool," Kyoko sighed, "I wish I had a sister I could share things with."

"What's that suppose to mean?!" Ryohei shouted as he frowned deeply at her causing Yamamoto to laugh loudly and Gokudera to flinch away from him in irritation. Kyoko smiled meekly at her brother.

"You and Haru are basically twins," Kazuko murmured. The girls laughed and Yuzuhira smiled. That's what she wanted. That fun, warm-hearted atmosphere.

Soon the food appeared and everyone began to eat, still conversating until everyone began to leave in groups. Yamamoto, Haru, Bianchi, and I-Pin first then it was Ryohei, Gokudera, and Lambo. When it was Kyoko, Tsuna, and Reborn's turn to leave Reborn told them to go ahead and that he would meet up with them later. Yuzuhira could see how happy Tsuna was when it would be just the two of them walking home together. He clearly liked that girl. He practically had hearts in his eyes. When Yuzuhira paid the bill and told Kazuko she was ready to go the only two people left were Reborn and Dino, and a few men in black suits that had been standing against the wall behind them silently.

"We hope you guys enjoyed yourselves," Yuzuhira smiled as both of the girls stood followed by Dino and Reborn. The boys were done with their dinner but they still stayed at the table. "We'd better be going now."

"Yeah, see you guys," Kazuko said as she followed her sister, leaving the restaurant. The table was quiet for a few minutes before Dino broke the silence with a chuckle.

"So, they're candidates for the Vongola Famiglia huh?"

"One of them is a candidate," Reborn stated as he slipped down from his chair and began to make his way toward the front of the restaurant. "I'm pretty sure the other one is a candidate for another Famiglia."

Dino let a hearty chuckle escape his lips as he watched the baby leave. He stood and left as well. He knew Reborn knew of his secrets and she was definitely one of them. Of course, he couldn't do anything about it except wait until his secret became revealed.

* * *

1\. We are also from Italy.- The Italian sentence Reborn had said to Kazuko.


	21. Chapter 21

Her morning was hell. She wasn't in a great mood to start off either. Her legs and feet were becoming sore. She grabbed her water bottle from inside her bag and lifted it to her lips. The rush of cold felt amazing as it slides down her throat hydrating her lips and mouth. She had woken up at 5 am to practice for the ballet recital her and Yuzuhira had in a few weeks. Yuzuhira didn't accompany her that morning. Yuzuhira had done the performance before so she knew the routine. Kazuko had a tough time with the routine. She couldn't remember some of the steps. So she had to spend more time practicing.

The sun had begun to rise, shining a soft orange light throughout the sky and clouds. The brisk, cool air hit her body in ways she didn't enjoy. Kazuko wore a black hooded mesh windbreaker, under it was a white crisp short sleeve t-shirt that showed off a bit of her mid-drift, a pair of tight black ripped jeans, a black baseball hat, and her favorite black laced-up combat boots. She was grumpy when she woke up too early in the mornings, especially this morning. She had been practicing non-stop for three hours until she got everything right. Once she was sure she had it down she began making her way home.

That was when the morning turned from crappy to completely unbearable.

As Kazuko was walking through town she heard sounds that seemed eerily similar to explosions. Kazuko did everything in her power to avoid the areas the explosions seemed to be coming from. She turned corners and walked through parks but the explosions seemed to follow her or at least getting closer. Somehow, some way she ended up directly in front of Namimori Middle.

Suddenly she heard a loud cackle and someone came running from around the corner behind her. She recognized the loud and somewhat obnoxious voice. It was the cow dressed baby, Lambo. And he was coming at her like a tornado.

"LAMBO'S BOMBING TARGET PRACTICE," the baby said loudly as he hurdled small grenades into the air in all directions. Kazuko twitched a bit. What on earth was happening? Why did this kid have such destructive weaponry? And why was this happening so early in the morning?!

What on earth was happening? Why did this kid have such destructive weaponry? And why was this happening so early in the morning?!

Kazuko quickly made a run for it when she noticed Lambo was quickly gaining distance toward her. He was rather quick and she was sore. There was no way she'd outrun him in such a short amount of time. So she did the only thing she could think of. She quickly ran through the opened gates of the school and ran towards what appeared to be the school building's front entrance.

But for some odd reason, Lambo had followed her onto the school's grounds. What fresh hell was this?! Kazuko decided running into the school's main building was probably not the wisest idea and quickly turned a few corners. She could tell by the sound of the grenades hitting the ground that he was rather close behind her.

Then she saw salvation. She ran toward a door and pulled it open, threw herself in, and slammed the door behind her. She heard a hurricane of explosions slowly begin to fade as Lambo seemed to head in another direction, preferably away from her.

Kazuko sighed and slowly slid down the door of the small building she had entered. It was apparently the school shed and it was full of gym equipment. Normally they kept sheds like this locked in case of theft. Maybe it was just a mistake on behalf of a personnel staff. Well, Kazuko was grateful for the mistake. She didn't know if it was because her lack of sleep the night prior or waking up early for rehearsal but she was tired. She let her heavy eyelids slide down and sighed.

She should stay there for the moment, she thought tiredly. Lambo was probably out there running a muck anyways. Maybe a quick nap would be nice. Slowly but surely she let sleep consume her.

* * *

Yuzuhira let her wet hair hang down her back as she made her way to her closet. She wanted to eat breakfast with a ton of eggs. That's all she could think about. They had a personal chef and his crew that came over and made them three meals a day but such small quantities of food did not satisfy her. Their mother never cooked because her manager was afraid she'd get blisters on her hands. For as long as Yuzuhira could remember her mother has never cooked. And their personal chef made food for squirrels to eat.

She pulled on a white tank top and a purple sweatshirt that was a bit big so it hung off her shoulders. She pulled on a pair of dark jeans and white low top shoes. She braided her hair and tied it into a high ponytail.

Yuzuhira pulled on a black jacket and began to make her way downstairs. When she got to the foyer she saw her mother pulling jackets and boxes from the foyer closet. Her mother glanced over at her. She had a deep frown on her flawless face.

"Where are you going so early in the morning?" Her mother asked as she pulled more boxes from the closet.

"Momma, it's seven and I'm going to get breakfast." Yuzuhira yawned, "What are you doing?"

Her mother sighed and stood, dusting herself off. "I'm looking for my diamond earring. It fell out of my coat pocket and all this stuff is making it hard to find. So I'm cleaning out the closet. Look at all this junk!"

Yuzuhira's eyebrows were raised as she watched her mother. She had never seen her mother do things like this before. She was turning more into a housewife lately. She watches the chef cook so she can learn how to, she had been watching the maids do the laundry, and she even started to clean. Maybe she just realized she was getting older and needed to be able to do things for herself but Yuzuhira knew not to tell her that.

Yuzuhira could never admit it but when she was young she had always wished her mother was like a normal mom and not a celebrity mom. She was a great mother. When it came to Yuzuhira and Kazuko she would drop everything she was doing and make sure they were put first. But they never cooked together, they never danced together, and they had family events that would always be in the public eye.

"I'll be back soon," Yuzuhira said as she opened the front door. "Do you want anything while I'm out?"

Her mother turned to her, seeming flustered. Yuzuhira tried to hold back a laugh. She had never seen her mother so frustrated. Especially over a messy closet.

"Bring me a chai tea dear."

Yuzuhira nodded as she made her way down the cobblestone steps and into the black car waiting in front of her house. It had been a quick drive to a small town restaurant. Yuzuhira enjoyed the quiet scenery outside the passing windows. That morning was rather quiet despite the random loud noises throughout the hour. It was weird. They sounded like explosions but that was silly.

Once Yuzuhira got to the restaurant she ordered her breakfast with a side of hot chocolate. She contemplated eating right there or going home to enjoy her meal. But she was one hundred percent sure her mother would smell it and suddenly want some which would turn into her eating all of it instead.

So she ate it alone, sitting in a booth by a large window. She had eaten her food, enjoying every bite of her eggs and pancakes. Once she was done with her food and hot chocolate she asked for her bill. She paid, left a tip, and walked outside to the suddenly busy sidewalk.

She pulled her phone from her pocket and began to dial for her driver until she heard her name being called.

"Yuzuhira!"

* * *

A/N: Ok guys so I got a review telling me about a mistake I've corrected on chapter 20. Please forgive me if I've made any mistakes in the story and definitely tell me if there are any inconsistencies you notice. It's super hard making a fanfiction with two OC's in the story. Mixing them up will happen maybe once or twice. Thank you guys!


	22. Chapter 22

When Yuzuhira saw Kyoko and Haru outside of the restaurant and was invited to go to a bakery with them, she agreed. Yuzuhira was fine with the fact that Kyoko and Haru had brought along I-Pin and Lambo. She was fine with the fact that said bakery was in the mountains and they had to climb the mountain trail to find it. She was fine when they got lost, all they had to do was go back the way they came. Yuzuhira was fine when Lambo told them he knew where it was and would show them the way, even though something screamed in her to not follow a baby into the mountains. What she was not fine with was the fact that the baby only got them more and more...and more lost.

They found a small path that had the entrance to a cave and to her surprise someone had been standing in front of the cave. She recognized the person. Her name was Bianchi. She remembered her from the night they all had dinner. They were all happy to see her. Yuzuhira almost jumped for joy when she saw a familiar face after hours of aimless walking. They quickly explained their situation to the young woman and she eased their worries. But then she told them she was lost and had been lost for three days prior to them finding her. Apparently, she was searching for poisonous mushrooms or something and got lost.

Yuzuhira could have cried. They seemed to be getting only more bad news the more they were on this mountain. As they conversed something caught their attention. It was something that sounded like a shrill scream. This alerted everyone. Bianchi was the first to react.

"Let's hide in the cave," she said, motioning to where she had just appeared from, "What caused that noise isn't too far. Let's go!"

Already scared and worried no one really objected to the idea. Although being trapped in a cave didn't seem like the best idea. Yuzuhira, however, followed Bianchi as she motioned the younger girls and babies into the dark cave.

For a while it was silent. No one spoke and no other noises were heard. Then they heard echoes from the entrance of the cave. It sounded like voices to her. No one said anything but she could tell they were all cowering in fear. After a while, one of the voices grew louder.

"It sounds like people," Yuzuhira whispered to no one in particular. Bianchi was next to her and moved toward the entrance, quietly shushing her. She began moving toward what Yuzuhira figured were the sound footsteps approaching. Yuzuhira did want to ask the voices for help. She watched enough horror movies to know there were three types of people in the mountains; The murderers who lived in the mountains that lost all their sanity and killed innocent hikers, the murderers who kidnapped people to hunt them down for fun, and the lost people trying to escape the lurking murderers.

Suddenly Bianchi moved and Yuzuhira jolted when she heard a loud scream. Bianchi did not come back to them and the scream was so shrill it could have only come from a woman. Yuzuhira heard footsteps leaving the cave and she quickly followed them. She needed to save Bianchi.

Yuzuhira wasn't like Kazuko. Kazuko could sniff out danger and fight without thinking. Yuzuhira wasn't that brave. She couldn't bare the thought of kill or seriously injuring another human being. So what was she going to do if Bianchi was in danger?!

Yuzuhira felt a cold sweat begin to drip from her temples as she ran. When Yuzuhira got to the entrance of the cave she recognized two people standing there. One of them was Bianchi and the other was Gokudera, Bianchi's brother. She was holding him up and he looked passed out.

"Huh, Bianchi?!" a voice shouted, "Yuzuhira?!"

* * *

Kazuko slowly and reluctantly began to rouse from her deep slumber heavy eyelids drug themselves open and she flinched at the light pouring into the dark room. She rubbed her knuckles onto her eyes and stretched her arms above her head. She had slept pretty well, despite the circumstances.

She looked down at the bag still slung around her shoulders and pulled out her phone to check the time. She had slept for six and a half hours. Kazuko huffed as she stood. She had told everyone she was on her way home at eight in the morning and here it was well into the afternoon.

Kazuko pulled herself to stand and stretched her sore body, wincing at the dull aching in her legs and shoulders. Kazuko straightened her clothes and hat, she was sure she had become a mess after that whole Lambo debacle.

Kazuko turned to open the door. She turned the handle and pushed the door open. But when she opened the door she was blinded by the light for a moment. Then she felt a hand grab her wrist and pull her forward. She was pressed against something hard and warm.

When her eyes adjusted to the light they widened as her olive eyes focused on the face inches above hers.

"Kyoya Hibari."

* * *

Yuzuhira turned to the voice when she heard her name. In front of her was Reborn, Tsuna, Yamamoto, and Dino. Suddenly Bianchi gasped and tossed her unconscious brother to the side and ran over to Reborn who was standing on a large rock.

"Welcome, Reborn!" Bianchi said, hugging the small baby.

"Caio-su."

"Wh-Why are you two here?" Tsuna asked surprised. Bianchi stood and turned to him as Dino walked up to her. Bianchi was probably telling them what had happened to her and why but Yuzuhira wasn't concentrated. When her eyes landed on the tall boy with blonde hair, Dino, her eyes narrowed and all sound was drowned out.

When she saw him her head started to hurt a bit and she would feel like something was wrong. She felt like she knew him like she had seen him before. He then glanced in her direction before he began walking over to her. He stopped just a foot away from her.

"And how long have you been here," he asked. Yuzuhira stared at him briefly before she shook her head, bringing herself out of her thoughts.

"We just got here this afternoon," she answered gazing into his brown eyes. Dino frowned a bit, "We?"

Just then a loud whine was heard and everyone flinched, turning their attention to the cave.

"Something else is in there?!" Tsuna shouted.

"Oh, I forgot," Bianchi murmured to herself, "Come on out everyone!"

"Why is everyone here?" Tsuna shouted as Lambo and I-Pin emerged first then it was Kyoko and Haru, "Haru and Kyoko?!"

Haru, crying, ran up to Tsuna and wrapped her arms around him, startling the now blushing boy.

"I thought my life was over," Haru cried hysterically.

"I'm so relieved to see you guys," Kyoko sighed. Yuzuhira sighed as well. She was glad there were more people with them, that meant more chance of survival and escape. She was starting to see what Kazuko meant when she said you need a lot of stamina to hang out with these people. There wasn't a dull moment. Yuzuhira was drained. She hoped her sister was having a better day than she was.

* * *

"How much longer do I have to do this?"

"Until it's finished."

Kazuko huffed as she scrubbed the chalkboard, painstakingly. Kyoya had found her in the shed. He apparently noticed her footprints in the thin, melting snow on the ground and followed them to the shed. It was a happy coincidence he found her around the same time she had woken up.

When she tried to explain her situation he didn't seem to care for her excuses and her punishment for trespassing on school grounds and breaking into a school facility was cleaning.

"Can you at least explain to me why _I_ have to do this?" Kazuko asked as she glared at the board. Kyoya watched her from the doorway of the classroom.

"Don't you have a student cleaning committee that takes care of stuff like this? And why are you at school on winter break?"

He didn't answer but he was definitely watching her. He was quiet but she could feel it, his gaze. His gaze was always intense and the corner of his lips were always facing downward. She felt uneasy with him watching her. She felt even more uneasy without her hat or jacket on. He confiscated her jacket and hat along with her bag and kept them on a desk near the door because it wasn't school appropriate attire, even though the school wasn't currently in session. The warm air of the school circled around her exposed mid-drift, causing goosebumps to rise in her skin. She felt a bit embarrassed because when she lifted her arms her shirt would rise higher, stopping just above her belly button.

"This classroom was filthy," Kazuko jolted when his voice suddenly echoed off the walls. She peered over her shoulder at him and he had a small smirk on his face. He must have seen he scared her, jerk.

"I hate when things aren't organized correctly and they failed to do their jobs sufficiently," he explained. "So I bit them to death."

Kazuko twitched involuntarily. She was not going to ask what he meant by that. Kazuko sighed as she turned to dump the damp towel into a warm, soapy bucket of water, that was on the teacher's desk. She still had to sweep the floors, wipe the windows, and clean the desks.

Kazuko glanced at Kyoya, who had turned silent again. When her eyes met his, she blushed heavily. He was still staring at her. She quickly averted her eyes and squeezed the wet towel into the bucket. She turned back to the board and stood on the tip of her toes trying to reach the corner of the board that still had a bit of chalk on it. She huffed and began bouncing on the tips of her toes, still unable to reach it. Her cheeks were beginning to turn a bright pink. This was embarrassing. As if things couldn't get any worse, Kazuko felt her foot slip in something wet, probably a small puddle of water the towel had pooled onto the floor.

She didn't have enough time to catch herself from falling and the teacher's desk was just behind her. She couldn't do anything as she fell so she just closed her eyes and waited for the desk to knock her unconscious. She could almost hear Yuzuhira dying of laughter at her funeral. Yuzuhira had always said her clumsiness would be the death of her.

Just as Kazuko's life flashed before her eyes she felt a strong arm wrap around her shoulders, stopping her fall. Kazuko blinked as she was slowly straightened and looked to Kyoya who was standing behind her. He had saved her. Kazuko sighed heavily and smiled up at him.

"Thank you."

His gaze became heavy on her as he suddenly began to lean closer to her. He towered over her, but then again Kazuko was kind of short. She watched his hand grab the towel she had in her hand and wiped the chalk from the corner of the board effortlessly. She hadn't even noticed she was still watching him. He was very handsome. She remembered thinking that when she first saw him. His smooth skin and his chilling aura seemed to draw her attention more than she appreciated. She was starting to get nervous and her heart was starting to beat loudly.

Then he turned to her, his gaze making her heart skip a beat.

"Are you trying to get bitten death?" He said lowly as he slipped his arm from around her, "You still have the floors to sweep."

Kazuko turned her gaze away from his and bit her bottom lip. At this rate, she was going to be here all day. She was hoping no one else's day was just as bad as hers.

* * *

Once everyone was settled down and comforted they were able to get their stories straight. Kyoko began to recap the events that led to them all gathering together. She explained her and Haru bumping into Yuzuhira that morning and how they were on their way to a bakery in the mountains, bringing along Lambo and I-Pin, getting lost, running into Bianchi, and running into the guys.

Lambo expressed his sorrows to them and Haru expressed her gratitude for them coming to their rescue. However, when Tsuna explained they were all lost to Haru and Lambo began crying hysterically. Everyone was in bad shape. Gokudera especially. He was laying down on the ground next to a concerned Yamamoto. He was still unconscious and wasn't looking so great. During the chaotic wailing, Dino was the first to come up with a plan. He bent over and picked up a twig, examining it closely.

"A fire..." Dino muttered to himself.

"Are you going to burn the twigs?" Yamamoto asked. Dino turned to him and nodded.

"Yeah," he answered, "We can send an SOS signal, and it'll protect us against the cold and wild animals too."

"I see," Yamamoto said as he stood, smiling, "Great idea."

"Everyone help gather branches," Dino ordered. Quickly everyone stood and began searching for branches. Yuzuhira started to make her way into the thickets as well before she heard Dino call for her.

"Yuzuhira," he called softly. Yuzuhira stopped and turned to him, confused. "You can come with me."

She turned back to the forest, thoughtfully. She would be searching the forest for branches by herself if she rejected him. The forest was dark and wilds animals could be around any corner or worse...spiders. And he obviously knew what he was doing and there was no reason not to go with him. Yuzuhira complied. Yuzuhira nodded and followed after him. He was quiet as they began looking from twigs, branches, anything they could find to start a fire. They did this in silence for some time.

She had picked up quite a few twigs and eventually she had an arm full of wood.

"Is your stack too heavy?" Yuzuhira heard Dino ask, "I can carry it for you."

Yuzuhira smiled meekly before shaking her head, "Thank you, I'm fine."

He nodded before he continued picking up twigs. Yuzuhira smiled to herself. She remembered she had a friend in Italy when she was young. He was a next door neighbor and the only person she could play with her age. He was a clumsy blonde haired boy that would play all sorts of game with her and even dressed up with her one time.

They'd use to play morning to evening. Once she got scolded by her granny for playing with a boy so much instead of other girls. She told her not to befriend the boy either. When Yuzuhira asked her why her granny said he was a child of the mafia and that made him dangerous. The Chiavarone Fam-

"Are you okay?"

Yuzuhira jolted and her eyes fluttered. Yuzuhira was so lost in thought she hadn't even realized Dino was standing right in front of her, watching her. She looked up at him, his brown eyes were so gentle. He looked worried as he stared down at her.

"You look pale," he whispered. Slowly his hand reached up and swept her bangs gently from her eyes. His fingers were cool against her face. Yuzuhira felt her heart begin to flutter.

Why did he seem so familiar?

Yuzuhira opened her mouth to ask him a question but before she could get it out he turned away from her.

"Let's hurry back," he said lowly, "I'm sure everyone is worried."

Yuzuhira let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding. Maybe she was just crazy. Yuzuhira shook her head and began to follow him. They had a mission to do and they had to do it soon. The sun was starting to set and the sky was becoming dark.

Once everyone had gotten back and placed their collected branches and twigs into a pile Dino and Tsuna kneeled down to try and start the fire while everyone circled around them.

"Okay..." Dino said as he reached into the inside of his jacket, searching for something, "Huh? I must've dropped my lighter somewhere."

"What? No way!" Tsuna panicked. Yuzuhira bit her bottom lip. Had they done all this for nothing? She sighed heavily. What else could they use to start a fire? Just then a weak and stumbling Gokudera appeared leaning against a tree.

"Gokudera!" Tsuna shouted, surprised.

"Are you feeling okay?" Dino asked the visibly ill man. The silver haired boy nodded but it was obvious he didn't feel great.

"Yeah..." he said, "This is exactly when I need to come through as the boss' right-hand man."

"Just you watch..." Gokudera weakly held up his hands and in between his fingers were sticks of dynamite. Where he pulled random sticks of dynamite from she'll never know. But while the boys were rejoicing she had a very bad feeling. Suddenly Bianchi ran up to her brother and held him close as she expressed admiration for his seemingly great idea.

However, Gokudera's eye rolled to the back of his head and he fell down to the ground, his dynamite scattering all over the ground. Instantly the sticks went off in all directions starting a very large blaze in the trees and grass surrounding them and spreading rapidly.

"I-It's a wildfire!" Tsuna screamed. Yuzuhira couldn't believe what was happening. This was all too unbelievable.

"It's spreading fast." Dino shouted as every tree in their vicinity caught fire, "Take shelter inside the cave, people!"

As soon as that idea struck him an explosion was heard and a large avalanche of rocks fell over the opening, blocking their haven. Yuzuhira turned to Lambo who was panicking and screaming. As he was doing so he began tossing multiple hand grenades he had pulled from his afro into the air. The explosions not only made the fire worse but also caused rocky debris to fly all over the place.

"Man, stupid Lambo!" Tsuna scolded as he lifted his arm to shield his face from the heat and debris. Yuzuhira felt herself begin to panic as well as the heat of the fire began to overwhelm her. And not just her, everyone.

"We're completely surrounded!"

"What should we do?!"

Yuzuhira suddenly felt a hand grab her wrist, and with great force, pull her. Dino had pulled her directly behind him and wrapped his jacket around her head, "Yuzu, don't leave my side!"

Yuzuhira's eyes widened as she stared at him. She had heard that before, but where?

Suddenly Yuzuhira felt a sharp pain on the back of her head and she fell to her knees, her vision instantly turning black as a voice yelled for her.

"YUZU!"

Then as the darkness consumed her another voice echoed from the recesses of her mind.

 _Yuzu! Come here! Don't leave my side!_

* * *

Row after row of desks were shining brightly in the clean classroom and the windows were so clear any bird would be lucky to fly into them. She was almost finished. She just had the floors to sweep.

She was tired though. But she was going to pull through. Anything to get home and soak in a warm bath. Just thinking about it made her perk up a bit. Kazuko grabbed the broom leaning against the wall by the door with a low hum. As she began to push the broom in between aisle, capturing small specks of dirt and dust she heard a voice.

"What song were you singing?"

Kazuko jumped, almost tripping over her own feet. She turned to Kyoya who was standing in the doorway. He had been quiet for so long she had almost forgotten he was still there.

"What song?" She asked with a raised eyebrow, "I wasn't singing a song."

"The song you were singing back then."

Kazuko stared at him a bit before a light bulb flickered in her head. "Kaerimichi?"

He hadn't said anything but she was sure that was what he was talking about. "It's a song I had to sing for a concert at Namimidori. What about it?"

"Sing it again."

Kazuko blinked at him. She was confused. What was he talking about? He wanted her to sing for him?

"I-I don't unders-stand." She stammered. He walked over to her and hovered. He planned to use intimidation to get his way.

"I can't sing with you staring at me lik-"

His eyes were dangerous as he stared down at her. "Sing it **again**."

The intimidation worked.

Kazuko shivered at the tone of his voice. She remembered him say he bit some students to death because they disobeyed him. She was sure she didn't want to experience whatever that was. She huffed and cleared her throat. She was never nervous singing in front of a crowd of people. She had learned something Yuzuhira had taught her about performing. The crowds gaze is what makes people nervous on stage, so if she didn't focus on their eyes she wouldn't get stage fright.

This was different. She could turn away from him but his gaze was so penetrative it was almost impossible. Kazuko still mustered up every ounce of courage and she sang. Her voice started out low but gradually it became louder and powerful. She hit every note and singing in the small room provided great acoustics.

When she was finished she slowly peered up at him. His steel cold eyes were lit up with what seemed like amusement. The corners of his lips weren't facing down anymore. They were facing upward, pulled into a small smirk. Kazuko turned away from him, hiding her cherry red cheeks. He was so weird.

Kazuko gasped and turned to her bag when she heard her ringtone, signaling a phone call. She dropped the broom on the ground and ran to her bag. She unzipped it and pulled her phone out. Her eyes flickered to the name popping onto the screen, Yuzuhira.

Kazuko pressed the green button and put the phone to her ear.

"Hello?" Kazuko scowled when a familiar deep voice was heard on the other end of the phone. "Dino?"

* * *

A/N: The song Kazuko was singing when they first met was Kaerimichi by Crystal Kay.


	23. Chapter 23

As the helicopter made it's way to his predetermined destination Dino tapped his foot rapidly. This was hard, harder than anything he has had to deal with in the past. He had to stay focused and push his desires aside. He had to keep his promise. He wouldn't see her, he couldn't see her. He made that promise to himself almost twelve and a half years ago. To keep her away from his world. The world of the mafioso. That world full of danger and violence. If he wanted to keep her safe that's how it had to be.

He could still see her running toward him in that red dress. Her hair was shorter then and she was such a cry baby. She cried all the time. When they played games he always won and she would cry. If the garden was too beautiful she would cry. When he first met her she was crying.

He especially remembered the day he told her goodbye. She was leaving for Japan and she was crying and begging for him to go with her. Of course, she knew he couldn't and that made her cry more. He was sad too but he knew it would be the best thing for her. Her silly games, her eccentric personality. He would miss her. She was definitely an oddball. That's why he cared for her.

With Reborn's interest in Kazuko for the Vongola family, it was more than likely that he would run into Yuzu a lot more. That meant that she would be a part of his life once more. There would be no avoiding her. And he would protect her by any means necessary.

* * *

Kazuko dusted herself off as she exited the women's staff locker room. The hospital corridor was a bit stuffy and the air had an undertone of bleach. She wore a somewhat tight pink nurses uniform, a pink nurses hat on top of her head, white flat shoes, and her hair was neatly pulled into a bun.

"Well," her father enthused, "Don't you look beautiful."

Her father was standing in front of the reception desk, waiting for her. He wore a dark brown suit with a blue tie under a white lab coat. He never really dressed in scrubs. Probably because he dealt with the business end of the hospital instead of the medical care. He was the director anyway.

Her father was a bit on the heavier side and he was average height for his age. Kazuko loved her father but sometimes she wondered how he got her mother to fall in love with him. She chalked it up to him being a bit better looking when her parents were younger. His skin was an olive tone and he had thick, black hair. The Italian in him was as clear as day. His mustache and eyebrows were thick as well. He had dark brown eyes and his face was becoming a bit wrinkly.

"Papa," Kazuko sighed, "How long do I have to do this?"

"What's the matter," her father said with raised eyebrows, "You use to love coming to work with me when you were younger."

"Yes, papa," Kazuko said as she tried to adjust her dress to fit more comfortably, "But I was five. Now I-"

"Oh no," her father interrupted with a gasp, "Your mother and Yuzuhira said you were starting your rebellious stage. I didn't think they were telling the truth..."

"I'm not!" Kazuko stomped. She was starting to think everybody was crazy and she was the only sane one lately, "I have to rehearse for a school fundraiser and-"

"That's right!" She couldn't stand talking to her father sometimes. He interrupted way too much. She could never get a word edgewise. "Your mother told me you had to perform in a few days. How is it going so far, sweetheart?"

"It's not going at all. That's why I wanted to know how long you need me here." Her father pursed his lips with a nod. He turned to the reception desk and grabbed two clipboards. He read them over before he handed them back to the nurse at the desk.

"I just need you to watch over a patient and Yuzuhira," he said, "Yuzuhira is the last room at the end of the hall. You can report back to the Chief if you have any problems."

"Wa-wait," Kazuko said as she watched her father begin to walk toward the nearby elevator," What about you?"

Her father smiled at her as he pressed one of the buttons.

"Sweetheart," he waved her to go, "I'll be in my office or making rounds. I'll come back down and we can go home then."

He gave her a wink and a thumbs up before he walked onto the elevator and disappeared. Kazuko huffed. Why did she have to be here for just two patients? Couldn't the other nurses just pick up the extra slack? Maybe it was just her father trying to spend time with her. She sighed as she agreed mentally.

"Miss Kurokawa." Kazuko looked up at the receptionist who had waved her over. Kazuko walked up to the smiling woman.

"The patient in room 312 is ready for his breakfast," she said as she handed her a small slip of paper. The paper had the breakfast order on it. "The food is ready. You just need to bring it to him."

"Uuh, okay," Kazuko bowed, "I'll get to it."

She was hoping she'd have an easy day today. Yesterday was draining. After she was done cleaning and got the phone call from Dino she told Kyoya she had to leave for an emergency and left. Luckily he didn't pursue her any further.

Apparently, Yuzuhira had gotten hit in the head with a rock while with Dino and passed out. When their father got wind of this he admitted her to the hospital without hesitation. He took injuries seriously due to his line of work, especially on the two of them. It wasn't serious, thankfully. Yuzuhira escaped with just a bump on the head.

Kazuko made her way down the hall of patients and celebrating family members toward her sister's room.

* * *

 _"Yuzu! Come on you're too slow!"_

 _Her legs felt heavy as she ran behind him. He was running faster than her. She couldn't keep up with him. She felt her eyes begin to sting. He was going to make fun of her again. She needed to catch up…or he was going to leave her behind-_

" _Dino!"_

Yuzuriha gasped and sat up quickly. She glanced around her surroundings, panting heavily. She was in her room, well her hospital room. She ran her hands through her hair. She was wearing a light blue patient dress with an IV in her left arm and her hair was free from its ponytail. The sun's rays were beaming through open curtains and her room was bright. A fresh bouquet of flowers sat in a vase on the small circular table by the window. Just then she heard her door opening and turned to see her sister. Yuzuhira giggled wildly.

"Shut up! Papa made me wear it!" Kazuko said pushing past door. She sat at the foot of Yuzuhira's bed with her arms crossed. "How do you feel? You didn't get amnesia did you?"

"No," Yuzuhira said with a roll of her eyes. "Papa's making you help out?"

"Yep. But I think I'm gonna head out by this afternoon." Kazuko sighed, "I have to rehe-"

"You're always rehearsing, geez," Yuzuhira huffed. It was simple to deduce what her sister's agenda was because she said it often. "Why don't you go hang out with any of your friends instead?"

Yuzuhira watched her sister roll her eyes. Yuzuhira couldn't stand when her sister attended school benefits constantly. But then again maybe the reason for that was because Yuzuhira never had friends either. Maybe she was forcing her own desires onto her sister. Speaking of desires...

"You didn't bring me any hot chocolate?" Yuzuhira asked with narrowed eyes. Kazuko twitched and let her shoulders sag.

"You know what I'm about to say Kazuko." Yuzuhira said matter of factly, "Whether it be hot or cold weather, hot chocolate makes me feel better."

"Yeah, yeah." Kazuko huffed. "Sorry, I didn't think about it-"

Suddenly there was a loud bang and shouting. From the open doorway, they could see running hospital staff and loud laughing.

"It's pretty lively out there," Yuzuhira muttered.

"Anyway, I'm curious," Kazuko said, suddenly turning back to Yuzuhira with raised eyebrows, "What's with you and Dino?"

Yuzuhira frowned, confused. "What about him?"

Kazuko had a mischievous smirk growing on her face. "You had his jacket on when he brought you to the hospital and he was holding you so tightly."

Yuzuhira blushed. She had been unconscious so she didn't know how she got here until she woke up in the middle of the night and a nurse informed her a blonde haired man had brought her here then contacted her family before he left. Yuzuhira's blushed deepened and something like a witches cackle escaped Kazuko lips.

"Shut up!" Yuzuhira said turning away from her sister, "There's nothing going on. He was just trying to help me."

"Ooooh, I see," Kazuko teased.

"Cut it out!" Yuzuhria said as she tossed her pillow in her direction. Kazuko caught and held it. "By the way, I called you a few times before I met up with Kyoko and Haru. What were _you_ doing yesterday?"

Yuzuhira smirked when her sister blushed and looked to the floor.

"I-I wasn't doing anything." Kazuko stammered, twiddling her thumbs. "I just got held up at Namimori with Kyoya."

"Huh?" Yuzuhira snickered, "Were you with a _boy_?"

Kazuko turned to her sister and squeezed her pillow, "Shut up!"

"You were!"

"I said shut up," She said as she stood, "It's not what you think! He's some prude from the Di-"

"Kazuko has a boyfriend!" Yuzuhira began to chant repeatedly. Yuzuhira laughed when Kazuko rushed her and tried to cover her face with her own pillow.

The two sister's hadn't heard the door being pushed open then suddenly a loud scream was heard. Kazuko lifted the pillow from her sister's face and their gazes fell on a red haired woman who was staring at them in horror. The woman ran over to Kazuko and grabbed her by her wrist, yanking the pillow from her grip.

"We are _not_ that type of hospital!" the woman yelled, "We can't take their pain away no matter how much they beg us!"

"W-wait this is-!" Kazuko couldn't finish her explanation before the woman began dragging her from her sister and out of the door.

Yuzuhira laughed loudly as she placed her pillow at the top of her bed and laid back down, staring at the ceiling. She sighed and her smile dropped. With all the commotion she had forgotten about something important. What was that dream she had? She was running with a blonde hair child she called Dino. Was it a dream she had subconsciously dragged Dino into or was it a memory?

It was odd. She felt like she knew him even when she first saw him and now she was having weird dreams about him. Yuzuhira was quiet in her room as she closed her eyes.

She had been thinking for quite some time, heavily. Then suddenly a feeling like a great rush of water was upon her. A memory came back to her. Innocence. Love. Happiness. The old days in Italy. Running in a large field, her hair only reached to her shoulders, she was younger then. She wore a red dress with white trim and she had a white bunny she carried around. His name was Momo. She loved Momo. Her grandmother gave it to her as a gift when she was one and she had never let it go. Then she remembered something else. A flash of blonde hair.

Yuzuhira's eyes popped open to the sound of a knock at her door. She quickly sat up.

"Come in!"

The doors slid open and her eyes widened, "Dino."

* * *

A/N: Sorry for taking so long! Correct me if you see any errors! Thanks guys!


	24. Chapter 24

He was briefly stunned when his eyes locked with hers. Every time he laid his eyes on her he would become speechless. Her eyelashes were full and thick over her glistening, soft gray eyes. Her eyes were beautiful under seductive thin brows. The sclerae that surrounded them were pristine, untouched by red. Her skin was beautiful and pale under the beaming sun. Her soft, pink angelic lips spoke his name so softly it almost tempted him to spill his confessions, almost. Her gray hair flowed down her back and shoulders, hanging over the side of her bed, barely touching the floor. She was a goddess.

"What's up, Yuzuhira?" He said with a slight wave, entering the room. In his hands, he held a cup holder with two capped drinks. She stared at him astonished with a bit of curiosity. "How are you feeling?"

Her eyes never left him as he stood a foot away from her bed. She looked him up and down. She seemed to be worried about something when he had walked in.

"Dino," her sweet voice rang throughout the quiet room. Her voice was a bit huskier than her sisters but when she spoke it sounded like music. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check up on you," he smiled, he had no idea what he was doing honestly. He tried to stay away from her room but he couldn't no matter how hard he tried. Even after he visited Tsuna he had made a promise to himself to just leave but he didn't. He needed to see her, to make sure she was okay. When she fainted he felt like time had slowed and he even began to panic. As soon as they were off the mountain and he got to a car he made sure he took her to the hospital as quickly as he could.

"Here." Dino pulled one of the two cups from the tray and held it out for her. She took the warm cup and eyed it wearily.

"What is this?"

Dino pulled the chair from the table next to her bed and sat. Her eyes followed him as he walked casually through the room. To him, it was normal talking with her. They were closer in the past but she obviously hadn't remembered him, which made things more difficult for them. To her, it probably felt like he was a stranger who was being overly friendly. "It's hot chocolate, your favorite."

"Really?" Her face lit up immediately. She pulled the lid from the cup, assuring herself it was what was promised. Yuzuhira smiled and took a sip from her cup. A light blush grew on her cheeks. He smiled widely. She always loved hot chocolate.

"Whether it be hot or cold weather, hot chocolate makes me feel better." He recited a rhyme she used when she was younger. Dino chuckled. He always made fun of her for random rhymes. She had rhymes for everything. She had a poor memory as a child so she had rhymes to remember everything. He made fun of her for it when he was a child and she would cry. She was crybaby too.

When she turned to him with wide eyes and a bewildered expression he knew he had made a mistake.

"Have we met before?"

 _Damn..._

* * *

The Chief was a bit loud and mean. She wore the same uniform as Kazuko and she had red spiked hair. She didn't seem like the standard nurse. She shoved the tray of food into Kazuko's hands warning her not to get into any more trouble before storming off.

Kazuko sighed, muttering to herself as she made her way to the third floor. Once Kazuko found the correct room number, she became a little uneasy. She was a bit nervous. She was shy, not a well-kept secret. This was going to be a bit of a challenge for her.

Kazuko knocked on the door lightly, "Your breakfast is ready."

She slid the door open and she stepped into the room then slid it shut. The patient was sitting on the end of the bed reading a book. She couldn't quite see them due to the drawn curtain circling the bed. The patient said nothing to her as she moved to place the tray on the table by the window. Kazuko stiffened when the curtain was heard being drawn back. She stole a glance at the patient. All she could make out was a dark haired boy. The room was silent and he didn't speak to her.

Kazuko remembered when she was a child her father made her introduce herself to the patients. He said it was much more pleasant to have a nurse that actually cared about the connection with their patients and it put them at ease.

Kazuko cleared her throat and turned to the patient ready to give a full introduction to her but she couldn't. The only thing she could do was let her mouth hang open and her eyes bulge.

"Yo, Kazuko."

She froze and her breathing halted. She felt like her heart was about to bounce through her chest. He pulled the chair out from the table and sat. His hair a was bit tousled like he had just woken up and he wore black pajamas with gray trim. There was a small smirk on his lips and his gray eyes were cold yet sparkled as the sun's rays hit him.

 _He looked like the devil._

"What are you doing here?!" Kazuko asked, puzzled. She had just seen him the other afternoon. So, what was he doing at the hospital?!

"I had a bit of pneumonia." He said as he lifted the lid over his food. "So I came to get rid of it."

Kazuko frowned at him. "I don't believe that. You looked fine yesterday"

He turned to her and immediately she felt uncomfortable. His eyes were solid, so bright, a lustrous color of polished steel. They were so chilling even when he had that amused smirk on his face. She placed a single hand on her hip and turned from him.

" _Fermati di fissarmi_." She was sure her face was several shades of red and he was still staring at her. She tried to remain calm when her Italian tongue decided to take over. She felt overloaded already and she had to take care of him _all_ day. What was God doing up there?!

"You've spoken that language before," she heard him say. She turned back to him when she heard the sound of metal hitting a plate. He had begun eating his food already. "What language is that?"

Kazuko huffed. She knew someone was going to ask her about that sooner or later. "I'm Italian, so it slips sometimes."

"Um, excuse me."

Kazuko turned to look behind her, where she had heard someone calling out. She saw two beds with two more patients in each bed. One had dark hair and the other had brown hair. They were average looking boys around the same age as her, maybe even a year younger.

"Are you our nurse?" Kazuko's eyebrows knitted together. She was sure her clipboard had said just one person in room 312 but if there were three people in the room maybe they were her responsibility as well.

"I believe I am. My name is Kazuko Kurokawa," Kazuko said with a bow, "Do you need anything?"

The boys turned to each other with large grins on their faces. Their eyes were lit with what seemed like excitement.

"C-Can we get a drink of water?"

Kazuko nodded and moved to leave the room. She was a bit relieved. At least she wasn't forced to be alone with Kyoya anymore. Although, she felt bad about the fact that she hadn't even noticed them at all.

* * *

"Have we met before?"

He said nothing as he sat next to her. His mouth agape and his shoulders tense. Yuzuhira stared into Dino's brown eyes, something growing in them. Something he wanted to express. His eyes resembled the hot chocolate she was holding. The color of hot cocoa sprinkled with tiny flecks of gold like mini marshmallows. That was the best she could describe them. His delicate blonde hairs fell onto his brow. His skin was light under his dark clothes. And he seemed like the type she should stay away from. But his eyes were soft as he stared at her. They almost seemed to be calling out for her, reaching for her.

"Are you okay?"

Yuzuhira jolted a bit. She hadn't even realized she had been making direct eye contact with him, more embarrassing she had been reaching out to him. Yuzuhira retracted her hand to her chest and turned from him with pink cheeks and wide eyes. She cleared her throat and nodded. "S-sorry, maybe I hit my head harder than I realized."

He chuckled and she peered over at him.

"It's okay," he said, as he took a sip from his cup.

"But, have we met before?"

Dino smiled widely at her. "You asked that question before. It was the night you treated us to dinner."

"I-I just feel as if we've met before." Yuzuhira sighed, "I'm sorry, I know it's strange."

"No, it's not strange," he sighed looking longingly into his cup. The room grew uncomfortably quiet. While it took Yuzuhira some time to figure out how to change the atmosphere she had a sudden realization.

"By the way," Yuzuhira smiled gently when she seemed to have caught his attention,"Thank you for saving me."

She had not once thanked him for coming to her rescue and this was probably her only chance. Yuzuhira was thoroughly confused when he blinked at her then laughed out loud. What was so funny?

"That's a little exaggerated," his laughing died down, "I just did the right thing is all."

Yuzuhira frowned at him and he straightened at her suddenly serious expression.

"I don't take it lightly," Yuzuhira said grasping his free hand and clutching it in between her hands, "Doing the right thing or saving me, whatever you want to call it, you rescued me. I am forever in your debt."

He was silent as he stared into her eyes. Yuzuhira's eyes widen a bit when she saw a light pink tint in his cheeks. She felt his fist tighten in her grip a bit before he slowly pulled it away and placed into on her own tightly clenched hands.

"You're really strange, you know that?"

* * *

She had a perfectly sculpted slim figure. Her waist was tapered and she had a pale complexion. A pair of rounded eyebrows looked down on full eyelashes. A set of dazzling, angel-white teeth gleamed as she spoke under the sun's rays. Her olive green silk hair was pulled up and away from her flawless face. He could see her enticing olive green eyes glancing at her over him. Her heart shaped lips captivated him as she spoke. She seemed to find her way back to him frequently. It entertained him. Her singing had captivated him first. Then when she bumped into him that day it was her appearance that was next to intrigue him. Their second, the meeting had given him the chance to put a leash on her. Their third encounter had caught him off guard but entertained him nonetheless.

She left the room to get water for the other two insects in his room. They looked like worms and he could squish them in a moment. The thought of it pleased him.

Kyoya turned his attention to the food sitting in front of him. Steak, eggs, and buttered bread with a side of grilled and seasoned baby tomatoes. This wasn't a standard meal provided for patients. Of course, when he requested it the nurse had told him that he would not be able to receive that particular order. That nurse was quickly bitten to death.

"Did you see her rack?"

"She's sexy in that uniform."

His eyes didn't leave his plate as he took another bite. He was becoming increasingly irritated.

"Her ass was great too."

"We're so lucky she's our nurse!"

Soon she came back into the room with another tray. His eyes followed her. She placed the tray next to their bedside and handed them their cups. The patients she had served grasped their cups but their fingers lingered on hers for too long. He wanted to crush them.

"Kazuko," he called lowly. Her chartreuse eyes found him instantly, sparkling as she made her way over to him. "I'm finished."

She glanced down at his plate and scowled. "You've barely touched your food."

Just then, there was a knock at the door and then it slid open. The nurse from the front desk stood there with a worried and pressed expression on her face.

"Miss Kurokawa. We need you right away! There has been a large spill down the halls!" The nurse quickly ran down the hall after exclaiming her alert.

"Ah, yes." Kazuko sighed, quickly grabbing the tray of barely eaten food then turned back to him. "I'll be back later."

He watched as she hurried from the room with the tray then slide the door closed. Kyoya yawned then an amused smirk grew on his face. He turned to the two patients in the bed before him and interrupted their annoying banter about her body. Their eyes quickly noticed the steel at his forearm and they froze.

"Let's play a game."

* * *

Kazuko sighed, dragging her feet. She had quickly cleaned up the mess that was covering the hall floors with the help of other nurses and crew staff. That had taken quite some time to finish. Then she was quickly reassigned to some other patients temporarily because another nurse had gotten sick. And to top if all off she had to go with the Chief to go retrieve a patient that was causing a ruckus the entire day from an odd room filled with reptiles in glass casings.

When they got there the person who they had to retrieve for causing, even more, problems for the Chief that day happened to be Tsuna. He was pretty banged up and hobbling on crutches. Kazuko couldn't be one hundred percent sure the Chief hadn't done this to him.

"Kazuko?!" Came his surprised shout from the floor. On the ground in front of him was shards of glass, an odd smelling liquid, and reptiles. Kazuko didn't want to know...

She simply followed the given instructions to help him from the floor and lead him to another reassigned room. Kazuko walked beside him, keeping pace with his crippled body. They would stare at one another, pondering something but turned away when the other noticed. As they began to make their way from the room and down the halls they gave into their own curiosity.

"Um, why are you dressed as a nurse?"

"Um, why are you in the hospital?"

They asked their questions in unison. Kazuko let out a small giggle and Tsuna blushed.

"I'm working here for the day." Kazuko explained first, "My Papa is the director and asked me to help out."

Tsuna's mouth dropped open in astonishment, "Your dad is the director here?!"

Kazuko nodded then eyed him. Tsuna quickly caught on to what she was seemingly pondering.

"Yuzuhira wasn't the only one that had gotten hurt yesterday," he chuckled nervously, "I got a broken leg."

Kazuko laughed loudly. Tsuna, surprised, stared at her with wide eyes. "Sorry, it just seemed like you got more than just a broken leg."

Tsuna blushed and nodded as she referred to his bandaged body.

"Does anybody know you're here?" Kazuko asked softly. Tsuna nodded once more.

"Yes," he answered, "So far everyone has come and visited me today."

"Did everybody go to the mountains yesterday too?"

Tsuna laughed nervously before muttering, "Well, you could say that."

"Just what did you guys do up there anyway?" Kazuko asked, shrugging off his odd reaction.

The pair jumped when they suddenly heard a loud voice. Just as Kazuko asked the question the Chief suddenly began to speak, completely ignoring the two's conversation.

"Mr. Sawada, I should discharge you, but a certain patient is graciously allowing you to share a room with him."

Kazuko had been so consumed in her conversation with Tsuna that she hadn't noticed they had been walking in a familiar hall.

"Here you go. Miss Kurokawa, I'm sure you can take things from here." She said quietly. Suddenly, the Chief stopped in front of a room and shuddered before almost darting past them "I-if you'll excuse me."

"O-okay," Kazuko called after her but she was already gone. She moved to the door then slid it open. "Excuse me-"

 _Why?_ Why did the universe treat her so poorly?

How did she end up back here?

Kazuko couldn't help the disappointed sigh leaving her lips as she stepped into the room, Tsuna close behind.

"Sorry for the intrusion, Kyoya."

* * *

They shared jokes and laughed, the nurse had brought them lunch and they ate together, and they talked. They had spent so much time together they found out things about one another. Well, she found out things about Dino. He seemed to know a lot about her already. It was odd that he did and when she questioned him about it Dino would act weird and say he was just guessing, which to Yuzuhira didn't set quite right. But she let it go. The one thing that stuck out the most was his clumsiness. He had fallen a lot in the time they had spent together, even while sitting. Yuzuhira hadn't even realized they had spent the entire morning and afternoon together until a nurse came in with an alert.

"Miss Kurokawa, I'm sorry but you have another visitor waiting. Your room is restricted to one visitor at a time."

The nurse bowed then left the room. Yuzuhira huffed. She knew her Papa was behind that restriction. He probably didn't want her to be bombarded by visitors if she were to get any.

"Well, I guess that's my cue." Dino sighed as he stood from his chair, stretching.

"You're leaving?" Yuzuhira couldn't hide the disappointment in her voice. Dino noticed it as well and smiled widely at her.

"I've stolen a lot of your time already," he said, "It's someone else's turn to get to spend some time with you. I'm sure your friends and family are worried too."

She knew he was right but for a moment she didn't care about anyone else. Just him. She was enjoying his company. But all she could do was purse her lips and nod.

"I guess I'll see you around?" It was more of a question than a statement. Regardless, he nodded and gave her a small wave as he headed toward the door.

"See ya around, Yuzu."

He slid the door opened then he slid it closed behind him. Yuzuhira pouted openly as she waited in the quiet room. She was alone for only a moment before there was a knock at the door and then it slid open.

"How's my lovely daughter?" Yuzuhira smiled brightly at her mother as she gracefully entered the room.

"I'm okay, Mama," Yuzuhira watched her mother move to her side in the bed then lean over to kiss her forehead. "Mama, I'm fine. You and papa were worried about nothing."

"No such thing my love," her mother moved to sit in the seat Dino had been sitting in all morning. "You know we want you both safe at all times and you must know your limitations."

Yuzuhira sighed, "I know Mama. This was just a tiny incident."

Her mother gave her a sarcastic look and Yuzuhira rolled her eyes. Then she noticed the big bag her mother was carrying with her.

"What do you have in there?" Yuzuhira asked, hoping she'd be able to change the subject and avoid a lecture she knew was coming.

"Oh, this?" Yes, lecture averted! "I'm glad you mentioned it or I would have completely forgotten."

As her mother began rummaging through her bag Yuzuhira couldn't help but notice her mother was slowly pulling out old things. Things from her childhood.

"I've found a lot of things in the closet," her mother smiled, "I finally finished that project by the way and found something adorable."

"Here," Her mother said pulling out a small wooden rectangular picture frame. Yuzuhira took the frame and glanced over it, then she froze.

"Isn't it cute?" Her mother enthused, "It's was taken when we were in Italy. It's you right before we had Kazuko."

Yuzuhira grasped tightened on the picture, her gray eyes wide with disbelief and her heart pounding. There she was, at a younger age, standing with her bunny in her arms and in her red dress. Standing next to her was a blonde haired boy just a tad older than her smiling wide and carefree. She recognized him in a moment. It was Dino.

It was Dino.

* * *

"Hibari?!"

"Yo." Kyoya greeted the pair with a smirk. He was sitting on the edge of his bed, reading a book she hadn't seen him with earlier.

"No way! Why are you in the hospital?!"

"I've got a touch of pneumonia." Kyoya's response was directed toward Tsuna but his eyes never left her, "I've almost recovered, but I wanted to play it safe."

Kazuko turned to Tsuna a bit perplexed. Did they know each other? Her brows furrowed for a moment then she remembered. Kazuko had seen them talking the day she was invited to the snowball fight they were having. Kazuko sighed inwardly, she seemed to be surrounded by these people. Hit with a sudden realization, Kazuko's eyes wandered over to the two now empty beds and scowled.

"Huh?" Kazuko said, "What happened to the two patients from earlier?"

Just as Kazuko had made her observation Tsuna let out a squeal. Kazuko turned to him. She followed the directions of his gaping eyes. The two patients were slumped against a large wardrobe, unconscious.

"What happened?!" Kazuko shouted, quickly kneeling down next to them. Their faces were badly bruised. The dark haired one had a black eye and blood dripping from his nose. The brown haired one didn't seem to have as much damage but still obviously wounded.

"Oh, that?" Kazuko turned to Kyoya, hoping to get a sensible explanation but his gray eyes just gleamed evilly. "I was playing a game to kill time, but they were too weak."

"A game?" Kazuko asked, still puzzled.

"It's a game I make anyone who rooms with me play. The rules are simple." Kyoya began to explain as he lifted up an arm to show off a steel tonfa in his grasp, "If you make the slightest noise while I'm sleeping...I'll bite you to death..."

Kazuko was sure she and Tsuna had the same facial expressions on their faces. It only took Kazuko a millisecond to recall Kyoya's violent tendencies, especially on the day they met. This was terrible and it reminded Kazuko why she had to stay away from someone like him. And now that she thought about it, Tsuna had to share the room with him. And Kyoya did say that whoever shared the room with him were subjugated to the rules.

"Um, I'm feeling a lot better, so I think I'll go," Tsuna stammered. He obviously was thinking the same thing she was thinking as well. Kazuko was all but willing to join him as he exited the room until a booming voice interrupted his quick exit. A familiar voice. A voice she knew all too well.

"Not without a doctor's okay, lad." As Tsuna was knocked to the floor Kyoya greeted the person walking into the room, her Papa.

"Hi, director."

"Director?" Tsuna gasped as he peered up at her Papa from the floor.

"Papa!?" Kazuko blurted out. Her Papa turned to her and smiled before grasping her hand, pulling her onto her feet.

"How's it going?" Kyoya asked. Two nurses suddenly followed behind her Papa and began to drag the two groaning boys out.

"Fine," her Papa greeted with a bow, "It's thanks to you that we're able to operate our hospital without worry."

Kazuko could only stare openly as she watched them converse. How did Kyoya seem to know everyone she knew? Better yet, how can someone so openly violent have helped her Papa in any way? She was bottled with questions.

"While you're here, please let us know if there's anything you need." Her Papa said as he pushed at her back and moved her directly in front of Kyoya. "I'll have my daughter take care of you as best she can for today."

Kazuko swore she felt a concrete block fall on her. She was trapped. And as Kyoya stared directly into her eyes with a smug smirk he probably found this entire situation entirely too amusing.

"For now, I think I'll sleep." Kyoya yawned as he moved to the head of his bed and slipped underneath his blankets. Her Papa grabbed one of the two chairs at the small table by the window and pulled it over to the side of Kyoya's bed. Kazuko felt strong hands on her shoulders pushing her down into the seat.

"I'll be going then," her Papa bowed once more before leaning over to Kazuko, "You've got this right?"

She felt like it was more of an order then it was a question. Her Papa patted her shoulders once more before leaving the room, sliding the door closed.

So here she was, sitting in a chair at Kyoya's bedside as he prepared to sleep.

"This is ridiculous," she sighed, "You don't need me to babysit you, right? I'll just go."

As Kazuko stood to leave. Tsuna turned to her with pleading eyes, "Y-you can't leave me in here!"

Kazuko flinched. She couldn't. Now that everything was under control around the hospital Kyoya was the only patient she needed to worry about. While skipping out on her duties seemed like the most pleasing thing to do she knew she would hear it from her father when he got home. So the only thing she could do was sit back down.

Kazuko sighed and placed her elbow on the bed and let her cheek rest in her palm. Her eyes met his and instantly she regretted her decision to stay. He was glancing at her with a smirk as he nestled his head into his pillow.

The room was extremely quiet and the atmosphere was all wrong. Yet, a drowsy feeling was beginning to overcome her. Despite all of the excitement just a few moments ago she could fall asleep any moment. She did her best to focus. She tried to focus on his pillow, his hair, his alabaster skin, anything. But it was no use.

After what felt like an eternity of silence her drowsiness began to overwhelm her. She couldn't help the heaviness of her eyelids. She was exhausted. She had never been worked so hard in her life. She just wanted sleep and that's exactly what she got. Her head dropped from its perched position in her palm and face planted onto the soft mattress. She gave in. She crossed her arms onto the bed and placed her head on to her arms. Once she was comfortable a small sigh escaped her lips and she was thrown into a peaceful sleep.

Unknowingly to her, a pair of steel eyes were enthralled by her. Kyoya's eyes gleamed with some sort of unnamed emotion in them. Her soft sighs sounded like a melody and to wake her would disrupt that. Kyoya laughed inwardly before he turned to the brunette sitting on the floor, shaking like a leaf as he stared at the door. Kyoya yawned one last time before he issued a final warning. Keeping her asleep was a top priority.

"Just to warn you, the sound of a leaf falling is enough to wake me up."

He relaxed his body and let his eyes shut to dive into the beautiful darkness of sleep. As he rested he could hear faint noises that sounded like someone bumping into furniture and whispering. It was quiet again. Then there were more noises. The noises ranged from someone running to small explosions. Then there was another explosion, a loud one this time.

He felt a movement by his side that quickly subdued into a small sigh. Kyoya pulled his eyelids open and glanced over to the door. Tsuna's face twisted in fear as Kyoya stood, tonfas ready and an evil gleam in his eyes.

She was only a mere second from being woken up, his caged bird, and that simply wouldn't do.

* * *

 _Fermati di fissarmi: Stop staring at me_


	25. Chapter 25

"What's wrong, Yuzuhira?" a voice rang throughout the room. Yuzuhira turned to her mother packing her belongings into a suitcase she brought along with her. While her mother packed Yuzuhira had begun getting dressed to go home. "You're being eerily quiet this evening. Are you sick? Should you stay here a little longer?"

"I was thinking the exact same thing," Her father chimed in. He had just arrived in her room to confirm her being discharged and looking through her chart one last time. "Should I prescribe you something sweetie?"

Yuzuhira scoffed, "You know, I'm not always eccentric and loud!"

Her mother just chuckled, "I'm just curious. What's on your mind?"

Yuzuhira huffed and turned to the picture sitting beside her bed. It was a picture from her childhood. In the picture were her and Dino. From the moment she met him she knew deep down she had met him before. She had no idea why or where. Then out of nowhere her mother finds an old picture. It was proof of her inkling, however, it incited more questions then it answered.

How did they meet? How long had they been friends? Why didn't he recognize her?

"I guess I do have a lot on my mind," Yuzuhira said as her mother moved to place a pair of shoes in front of her. Yuzuhira slipped them on her feet and placed her long hair into her usual style.

"Well," her father said, "What is it?"

Yuzuhira's lips frowned a bit. Maybe asking her parents would help her uncover something, or possibly make things worse. But still, they would be the only ones who could answer her questions from her childhood.

"Was there ever someone I used to play with as a child?" Yuzuhira questioned absentmindedly. She stared at her shoes. She hadn't even realized she asked the question until it spilled from her lips. Yuzuhira turned to her parents who were staring at her with furrowed brows.

"Why, sweetheart?" Her father asked as he sat down her chart on the empty bed.

"Does this have to do with that picture again?" Her mother could see right through her sometimes. It definitely didn't help that she already tried to grill her mother about the picture just earlier.

"She asked that question earlier when I first brought it to her. I just figured her head was still hurting." Her mother explained to her father.

"My heads fine!" Yuzuhira rolled her eyes and stood with her arms closed. "I'm just curious about something and you two are the only ones who can really answer my questions?"

"Curious about what Yuzu?" Her father asked. Yuzuhira nibbled on her bottom lip. Should she really go further than this? Why was this even so important to her? It was just a chance he looked like the little boy in the picture. Hell, there was more of a chance of her getting struck by lightning before she would meet someone from Italy she was once friends with. But...

When she got hit on the head and the way he called out for her...

"Well, if I remember correctly Yuzu," her father began, "There were two kids you use to play with when you were that young."

Yuzuhira's eyes met her fathers. Confusion overwriting any other emotion present.

There were two?

* * *

Kazuko quickly sat up. Her hair free from its bun and fell sloppily to her shoulders. The room was filled with an orange, warm light from the setting sun.

The sun setting?

How long had she been asleep?

So, how did she get into the bed?

She blinked a few times, letting her eyes adjust properly. Once they had she began to recall her current situation. She was very confused. She remembered falling asleep after helping Tsuna to the room. Then her father ordered her to stay by Kyoya's side. She definitely remembered falling asleep in the chair so-

"Finally awake, huh?"

Instinctively Kazuko quickly, yet sloppily, rolled from the bed and onto her feet to the floor. Her hands went up and she crouched, her back against the closest window to the bed. The voice was familiar but she did not let her guard down. The room returned to silence and she waited a few minutes for the owner of the voice to show himself. Suddenly, on the opposite side of the room, a pillow from the bed across from hers jumped up and turned around. As strange as it sounded it was true. The pillow also had a face and the face was smiling nonchalantly at her. It was a face she recognized. It was the face of the baby she had seen around Tsuna so many times before.

"Caio-su, Kazuko."

Kazuko frowned, deeply. She had never frowned like that in her life. She looked around the room and saw no one else but the talking pillow and squinted her eyes to be sure she was, in fact, looking at what she thought she was seeing with her own two eyes.

"W-what is happening...?"

"I'm finally able to talk to you alone, Kazuko." He wobbled to the end of the bed, an attempt to get closer to her. Kazuko wasn't sure to let her guard down or tighten her defenses at this point.

"Uh...Reborn, right?" She asked unsure, "What are you doing here? And why are you dressed like that?"

This was the oddest encounter she could ever recall. Was she dreaming?

"I've come for you, Kazuko."

Kazuko tensed. She didn't want to fight in a hospital but if she had too she would. She especially didn't want to fight with a baby. "What do you want?"

His smirk seemed to grow wider, "I want you to join the Vongola Familia."

* * *

Yuzuhira's mouth dropped open a bit. Now she was definitely confused. "What do you mean two?"

"Oh, you're right dear," her mother said as a light bulb seemed to have gone off in her head. "And the funny part was that they were both older than you and had blonde hair. We actually thought you had a thing for blondes."

Her mother giggled at the memory while her father seemed a bit irritated.

"A-are you sure?" Yuzuhira asked. Her eyes flickered to the picture of her and the blonde haired boy. "Well, if I was with them both all the time why wasn't the other boy in the picture too?

"Hmm," her mother hummed, "Well, actually it wasn't another boy it was a girl."

"A girl?"

"Yes," she nodded, "But you weren't allowed to play with her after a while."

"Why not?" On edge now, Yuzuhira's head began to spin a bit from the new information. At first, she thought it may be because of her head injury but it felt odd. Almost as if something was trying to come back to her. Like a memory or something.

"There was one child that your grandmother wasn't too fond of," her father said pondering. "But it wasn't the child in this photo."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the little girl- Susan or Susanna- or something," her father then explained, "Your grandmother told us to keep you away from her."

"Why?"

"Well, we don't remember too much about it," her mother then answered. "But I think your grandmother said it was because she thought she was dangerous."

"Dangerous? How?" Yuzuhira frowned, "Like she tried to hurt me or something?"

"U-uh, I don't remember sweetie it was such a long time ago." Her mother insisted but Yuzuhira wasn't satisfied. She needed answers. "Look, sweetie let's talk about this some other times."

"But-!"

She was ready to ask a bunch of other questions when her father suddenly moved to her suitcase and pulled out a white cardigan and placed it over shoulders.

"Now, now," he said as he ushered her to the door after he grabbed the luggage, "That's enough for today. I don't want you to overwhelm yourself."

"And I'll take this for a while." Her mother agreed. She grabbed the picture from the nightstand and held it to her chest, hiding the picture from Yuzuhira's viewing eyes.

"No, I'm fin-"

"That's enough." His voice was stern and his usually relaxed expression was replaced by an uncharacteristically serious one. He never got like that. Moments like that Yuzuhira knew to obey, even if she didn't want to.

With a defeated sigh, Yuzuhira nodded. " _Va Bene_..."

"Good." He smiled. He held the door open and Yuzuhira, along with her mother, exited the hospital room and into the quiet hallway. They began to make there way down the halls of the hospital. The sun had begun setting and an orange light swallowed the hallways from the windows. Nurses and doctors were diligently doing their jobs. It was quiet and peaceful yet she didn't feel relaxed, not one bit.

She was happy to at least be going home. She was there long enough and fully rested. Still, this was going to be on her mind for a while and her parents knew soon she would start asking questions again. It was so strange, all of it.

Two kids older than her...

The boy could be the person she's met recently...

And at some point, she wasn't allowed to see the other one...

Neither one she could really remember...

And for some reason, her grandmother knew something strange...

Yuzuhira's mind wondered millions of questions. None she would get answers for anytime soon. She could think of asking Kazuko but she wasn't even born then. But maybe she knew something. It was just then a new and more important question popped into her head. Yuzuhira stopped in her tracks and glanced around before she spoke, catching her parents attention.

"H-hey," Yuzuhira said, "Where's Kazuko?"

* * *

Kazuko had no idea how he did it but she was sitting down at the table in the room talking to Reborn. She didn't take too well to strangers. She was a bit shy and became flustered easily. Not only that but she wasn't trusting at all. She didn't like fighting first and asking questions later but she was trained to do so. And before she could even get a reason to she did not like Reborn.

Well, it was more like she didn't trust him.

Today, however, he did something that was very hard for a stranger to do. He had her defenses down and slackened. Reborn, void of pillow costume, sat in the chair across the table sipping tea. Kazuko had wide, searching eyes. In the past forty-five minutes, she had been with Reborn, who had explained to her things she didn't quite understand.

No, that wasn't it. She understood. She just didn't get it. It was all too strange.

"Let's do this one more time," Kazuko sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose as a frown dawned upon her features. "You're from Italy?"

He nodded.

"Y-you're a hitman and you're here to train Tsuna to become the tenth boss of a mafia family from Italy?"

He nodded.

"And you want me to be part of your team-erm, family?"

He nodded once more.

"Listen," Kazuko gave a nervous chuckle," This is some sort of joke isn't it? I mean every one of Tsuna's friends is involved so-so they must know about all of this and you're telling me they're in on it too?"

Before he could answer she stood and ran her hands through her disheveled hair. "None of this makes sense. I mean those other babies and his friends from school are involved too? This is a joke, right? You're not really an assassin. Stop fooling around-"

Kazuko turned to give the half-wit baby a piece of her mind. There was no way any of that crap he told her was real. This baby was playing a game or something. He was watching too much TV. But, it would explain all the crazy stuff she saw at the school. The tanks, swords, and crazy babies. Kazuko sighed then turned to look at him. The baby just held a smirk on his lips and his eyes held a fire. He sat calmly in his suit and weird lizard on top of his hat. Just watching her with such confidence and reassurance in his eyes that even she couldn't deny.

"I'm sorry," she sighed, "This is just too unconventional..."

Just then a loud voice over an intercom outside of the room rang throughout the halls.

"Kazuko Kurokawa, please report to the front desk. Kazuko Kurokawa, please report to the front desk."

Kazuko cursed under her breath. She was going to have it now. Falling asleep on the job and waking up to talk to an assassin all while neglecting patients. She had to be the worse volunteer in the history of volunteering. Kazuko moved to the door before turning to look at the baby. He continued to watch her with that same confident expression.

"Prove it." She spoke without thinking. "Prove you are what you say you are."

The fire in him seem to grow at her words and she knew, somehow, she would regret what she said.

"Sure," his eyes gleamed, "But in return I want you to join Tsuna's family."

"What?" Her brows pulled together in confusion.

"Tomorrow I will prove to you everything I spoke of. But in return, you must surrender your life to the mafia and join Tsuna's family."

"Kazuko Kurokawa, please report to the front desk." The voice spoke again urgently this time.

"Tomorrow?" She felt an odd tingle throughout her body as she grasped the door handle and slid the door open.

"Tomorrow." He nodded. Kazuko took a deep breath than with a nod of her head, she bolted down the hall from the room.

In the room, alone. Reborn lifted Leon from his hat and onto his finger. His smirk grew and a small chuckle echoed throughout the room.

"Hm, this was easier than I thought, huh?"

* * *

 _Va Bene - Okay_

 _Kazuko and Yuzuhira sure have their hands full. Sorry for the delay and simple chapter. I'm trying to make up for lost time. Thanks for reading!_


	26. Chapter 26

"Caio-su, Kazuko."

"Why are we in the middle of nowhere?!"

Kazuko wasted no time with her questions as her voice rang out and echoed through the leaves and branches of the dense forest. The snow had melted away long ago and winter was in the odd stage of just chilly breezes and only the momentary warmth of the fleeting sun behind large clouds. And like a crazy person there she stood in the middle of a clearing surrounded by a dense forest. Although, she wasn't alone. There was a small shack dead in the center with a large pile of hay on the side of it. Oh, Reborn was there too.

Kazuko sighed. At least she hoped it was Reborn. It appeared to be him but he was without his fedora and wearing a white long sleeve shirt, a pair of green overalls, black rain boots, and had a piece of hay hanging from his lips. He also had a green hammer hanging from one of the loops on his overalls that was blinking nonchalantly but she could only process so much of Reborn's strangeness at one time.

"Why are you dressed like that?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

Kazuko twitched in annoyance. She had woken up late in the day and just tossed something on when Reborn called and had requested her immediate appearance. That something she was wearing just happened to be her school uniform along with a white cardigan tied around her waist.

"It's not even the winter school unifor-"

"Enough!" Kazuko said through gritted teeth, "I just put something on!"  
Kazuko gasped as the sudden cold breeze licked her face and crept under her clothes, spreading across her skin. Goosebumps erupted throughout her skin. "Why did you bring me to the forest in such chilly weather anyway?"

Reborn didn't answer her at first. Instead, he hopped onto the large pile of hay with a chortle. Kazuko could ask why. She could. But she didn't. It would be only a matter of time before the strange baby explained anyways.

"This is the only way to get you to understand."

Suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, Reborn pulled something from behind him and tossed it to her feet. Kazuko watched as two pink sticks landed in the grass directly in front of her feet, standing up right in the hard ground. Kazuko looked back up to him with a raised eyebrow. "And this is...?"

"Those are your new weapons," he simply stated. "Pick them up."

"Uh...sure," Kazuko shrugged, though she was still uncertain. She kneeled to one knee and grasped one in each hand, inspecting them. They weren't just sticks. They were pink batons. Well, they were better known as gymnastic juggling clubs. But, still, she was perplexed as to what was going on. "What is this for?"

"I told you," he answered, "These are your new weapons."

"No, I got that," she said a bit irritated. "I mean, how are these weapons?"

He merely chuckled and let his lips curve into a smug smirk. "You're a gymnast, aren't you?"

"No," Kazuko scoffed, "I'm a ballet dancer."

"They're the same thing," Reborn said as he hopped off the mound of hay.

"They are not!" Kazuko shouted back. "Anyway, how is this a weapon? You really have been joking from the start, haven't you? And why did you jump up there just to give these to me? Was that just for dramatic effect?!"

"Yes, and you will use them soon enough."

"Which one of those questions were you saying yes to?!" Kazuko just about had it. She glanced down at the clubs before looking back to Reborn. "How will I be able to use these? They're practically toys."

"You ask a lot of questions, Kazuko," Reborn replied blatantly.

"It's only natural in this type of situation!"

"Well," Reborn said after a few minutes of silences, "Let's begin your training."

"Huh?" Kazuko rose a brow.

Training?

"Hold it," Kazuko said loudly. "What training? I thought this whole meeting was for you to prove everything you said to me yesterday."

"It is," Reborn nodded, taking out his hay from between his lips and twirling it in the air, "And this is how you'll understand everything."

"Well? What am I supposed to be doing?"

Almost as if he had waited for her to ask he smirked and a gleam seemed to shine in his eyes.

"You're going to hit every piece of hay I throw at you and you are going to hit them with your weapons. That's all you have to do."

"..."

Kazuko had to fight the immense urge to drop the stupid clubs and walk away while she still had what was left of her dignity. Was she going insane? She had to be. What was a fourteen-year-old girl doing in the forest with a baby holding gymnastics clubs that were supposed to be weapons? This was idiotic.

"Reborn-"

Before she could get a single word of refusal to escape her lips Reborn threw the piece of hay that he had in his hands at her. The hay had made it all the way to her and flew past her head at lightning speed. Kazuko barely had time to dodge it but when she had she was able to see where it had landed. It struck the tree behind her but not in the way hay should. A normal piece of hay would have simply fallen to the ground and not even made it even a foot to her. This piece of hay was projectile and it pierced the tree as if someone had thrown a dagger.  
Kazuko quickly turned to Reborn who had a piece of hay in each hand. The deadly hay that was obviously not hay. He began to throw them and she dodged them, easily.

"Reborn!" Kazuko cried out as she ducked and rolled in strategic moves. "What are you doing? What is this?"

Reborn ceased his rapid-fire to pucker his lips and frown, "For someone who asks a ton of questions you really don't pay attention."

"Reborn!" Kazuko practically growled. It didn't take long before he began to throw them more and more. Taking pieces of hay from the overly large pile he stood next to. She would have to grab him to get him to stop but that was going to be difficult. She placed both clubs in one hand to better assist herself in dodging. But because she only had one free hand it was making it very hard to grab him. Still, she needed to make it work.

Kazuko's eyes widened and she let out an eep as she ducked to the ground to dodge a piece of deadly hay Reborn had thrown at her, aiming at her head. She gritted her teeth and frowned deeply.  
This was ridiculous, she thought. She would stop this crazy game. This was dangerous and she still didn't have all the details yet!

The moment she saw an opening she ran towards the baby. He smirked and hopped up from her reach as if he knew she'd do that. Kazuko rolled and bounced on the ground. Her reaching hand grasping nothing but grass and dirt. Kazuko quickly stood and glared up at the baby.

Suddenly he took the green hammer from his belt loop and pointed it at her. "Use your weapons to defend your self."

Kazuko scoffed and stood. Reluctantly, she grasped the other club in her other hand and held them as if she was about to play the drums. Why? Because she had no idea what she was doing!

"What am I suppose to do?!" Kazuko shouted at the baby on top of the hay mound. Frustration clear on her face. Reborn did not speak but his face was uncharacteristically serious and his eyes were hard as he looked down at her. Kazuko gasped when more hay whizzed over her head. She felt the adrenaline coursing through her system at this point. Years of training to fight and here she was just dodging. Well, in this case, she was only running away with her tail between her legs.  
She was becoming angry. Why was she running instead of fighting back? She has never run from a challenge before in her life so, why now?

Kazuko slid to a stop and whipped around to him, a deep frown still gracing her features. She was done running. From a baby no less!  
She glanced down at the stupid clubs and sighed. Fine! If he wanted her to swing she would swing. And if she didn't die she hoped the stupid hay would hit the stupid baby so she could go to her stupid house! At this point, she had enough. She was covered in grass, dirt, and sweat. She was angry!

Kazuko waited for Reborn to through more hay. Once he had she did it. She waited until the hay was within arms reach and she swung the clubs. Kazuko swung and all at once everything began to move in slow motion. She felt a spark within her. The moment the grip on her club tightened there was a bright pink light that dimmed quickly. Before she could really get a general idea of what was happening she swung the clubs.

She had involuntarily closed her eyes and cursed herself. Even in dire situations, she was never to close her eyes. That was one of the first rules she learned in fighting. Slowly, she opened them and was in awe of what had been in her grasp. The clubs had been gone and something different had replaced them.

It was a Japanese fan, two identical fans to be exact. Japanese fans are made of paper on a bamboo frame. But these weren't just any kind of Japanese fans. These fans were strange. Kazuko weighed the fans in her hands, slashing them delicately at the air with a novice-like apprehension. They were weapons. She could tell by just looking at them.

The fans bamboo frame was actually a gold-colored stainless-steel and they were a bit heavy. They were large too. Kazuko folded them closed and then open again. When they were open the fan was at least sixteen inches wide. The fan's design on the paper was a beautiful pink with an array of flowers on it but the paper wasn't paper. It was steel as well. And the end of the fans was sharp, dangerously sharp. Sharp enough to even cut through other metals.

These were definitely weapons.

"Pass!"

Kazuko looked at Reborn who had been standing in front of her. She was so mesmerized at what she was looking at she hadn't noticed him.

"Reborn," Kazuko said in a hushed tone, "What is this?"

"Those are called," Reborn said in a triumphant voice, "Capolinea Di Canto."

"These are the are...mine?" Kazuko asked with a small smile. They were beautiful.

"Yes." Reborn nodded.

"Thank you."

There was silence for a few moments before Reborn spoke next.

"Now," Reborn clapped lightly,"All that is left is to transfer you to Namimori."

Kazuko's marveling over her newly acquired weapon was shattered like glass. Her widened eyes found him and her mouth dropped open. "What did you just say?"

"You'll be switching schools by next Monday."

"Wa-wait a minute," Kazuko stammered, completely taken aback. "I never really agreed to join- this whatever this is. And I just can't switch at the beginning of the new year. Do you know how much work I put into getting into that school?! Not to mention-"

"You must have guessed at some point that you can't fulfill your duties as a member of the Vongola Famiglia from a different school let alone different part of town. How would you be able to protect No-Good Tsuna?"

"Protect him?" Kazuko was confused now. "Protect him from what?"

"Kazuko," Reborn said, his tone serious and hard, "Tsuna is the tenth Vongola Famiglia boss. There will be battles and obstacles he will have to face almost every day. Being apart of his family is shouldering the responsibility of protecting his life and fighting for the Vongola no matter what. You must be able to fight for him and with him. Now, the question remains: Will you?"

"...That is a lot to consider," she shook her head as she spoke. To give her service- no. Her life to being in something like this was...

"At least give me a few days to make up my mind."

Reborn's tiny lips fell into a frown. His face was stern and his tone made her a little tense as he spoke to her. "No."

"Excuse-"

"This is a very important decision to make and it has to be made now and only now."

"That's why I'm telling you to give me a few days."

"I cannot."

Kazuko frowned. This was ridiculous. Here she was in the middle of a field with a baby arguing about uprooting her life for her to be trained as a member of a mafia family. Not only had this power been awakened inside her she didn't even know she had but she was able to fight in a way she had never done before. And to be asked to do it for the sake of someone else, someone she barely knew was absurd.

Yet, here she was considering it. Considering all of it. What kind of life would she have like this? What would her parents think?

"Of course," Reborn suddenly began as if he could read her mind, "Being a member of the mafia is not something you'll want to broadcast to any and everyone."

"Don't you do it all the time?!"

He ignored her comment as he continued to speak. "Your life as a hitman will overwhelm your personal life. Your family will no longer just be what you're used too."

Kazuko exhaled, unknowingly holding her breath as Reborn explained to her.

"Your family will not just be your mother, father, and sister. You will also be apart of the Vongola Famiglia. Your everyday life will no longer be just about doing the things you love; singing and dancing. You would need to put the family first. This life could be anything from climbing a mountain one day to diving deep into the sea the next."

"Rebo-"

"You will be faced with challenges you didn't think once in your life think you'd ever have to face and it will be difficult."

"Yes, but-"

"So choose." He continued to interrupt her protests, "Although this life has a long and difficult road ahead you won't be doing it alone. The Vongola Famiglia is your family and whatever journey you decide to take they will be right behind you. You would never be alone."

Kazuko just stood there. The chilly air breezed past her revealed forearms and legs. It was quiet but Kazuko knew it was because Reborn was waiting. He was waiting for an answer and she was torn between answering and not. She slowly lifted her hand to see the shimmering fan displayed proudly. They almost sang to her, beckoning her. She didn't understand it but from the moment she met these people something within her seemed to be trying to ignite. And now she felt like she was on fire from head to toe. Her heart was pounding and all she could really understand was this.

Kazuko's lips quivered and her nostrils flared. She felt, what could only be described, as a hunger growing within her with every second she held these glorious fans. It was like...they were a part of her.

"I'll do it..."

"You'll do what?"

"I'll join the Vongola Famiglia." Kazuko hadn't even realized she had spoken until it was too late. All at once the weight of everything began to crumble onto her and she was stuck between devastated and deliriously excited.

Reborn nodded and smiled at her. She knew he knew that she was going to say that. Kazuko let out a deep breath. She was part of the mafia...what was her family going to think. Especially, Yuzuhira. Kazuko gasped.

"What about my family?" She asked, wide-eyed, "There is no way my parents are going to allow me to switch schools so suddenly. They are going to ask a lot of questions. Questions I can't answer."

"Lots of questions are annoying, aren't they?"

"Reborn, I'm serious!"

"It'll be alright. It would be their best interest not to know about your involvement with the mafia. Besides...," Reborn chuckled and gleamed almost evilly, "Professor Borin will be at your house tonight to discuss your school transfer."

"Who is that?" Kazuko narrowed her eyes.

"You'll see."

Deep down she knew this was not going to end well...

"But first we have to pick up all this hay," Reborn interjected, "The farmer I borrowed it from is waiting for me to bring it back."

"...What..?"

* * *

Capolinea Di Canto: Singing Terminus


	27. Chapter 27

**Author's Note** : So, we've made it! Finally, we are caught up on how Kazuko joined the Vongola family. Thanks for reading guys! I have good news and bad news.

Huh? What did you say? Give you the bad news first?

Sure!

 **Bad news** : I can't update every. single. week.

Heck, not even every single month and it actually sucks. But I'm doing my best guys. Just pray for me!

 **Good news** : This story out of all of my others may be my longest. Soon my story will merge with the episodes more consistently and once it does I'll probably have a handful of chapters of my own ideas. Huh? Why is that good? That's because it'll be easier for me to update and create, duh! It's easy to go by the episodes. BUT! Don't fret. I'll make it interesting guys trust me.

Also, there's a **spoiler alert** at the end for those that want it. It's just an early Christmas gift because you guys are so great!

Thanks again guys and read on!

 **HAPPY HOLIDAYS!**

 **P.s:** Please take the poll on my page for my new story on QuoteV. It'd help a lot! Thanks!

* * *

"Ciao-su, Kazuko."

And so here they were...

This was her life now...

But even so, it was too early. Way, way, way, way too early. Kazuko, extremely tired, nodded to the baby. Why? Why the hell were they at Namimori Middle School at five o'clock a.m. Who in their right minds would be at school before the gates were even open? She had to climb over the giant wall just to get in. When she walked in it was eerily dark and quiet. She immediately felt disturbed and paranoid by old ghost stories and hauntings from her childhood.

Not to mention she was sure she was the only one there. Well, she thought she was until all the lights turned on, revealing Reborn standing at the entrance of the school wearing pajamas. Down the hallway were hurdles lined up behind one another, wrapped in barbed wire.

"W-what is all this?" Kazuko spoke lowly. She was tired and she was sure by now she was dreaming.

"This is your training and Namimori initiation," Reborn said smugly, "I call it 'Kazuko's Welcome'."

It wasn't much of a name. But besides that what was he talking about?

"What do you mean training? I thought I finished training." She understood the initiation part. It took less than half an hour for Reborn to convince her parents to switch her schools. This was probably Reborn's unorthodox way of greeting her to her new school, but training?

"There you go again with the questions, Kazuko," Reborn sighed almost happily, "You're part of Tsuna's family now, the Vongola Famiglia. Which means you're part of the mafia and you're a hitman. And you must train like one."

Kazuko sighed and massaged her temples. When Reborn first said this to her and Yuzuhira they didn't believe him. Last night, Reborn took Yuzuhira aside when their parents weren't looking and explained everything to her. Kazuko knew her sister long enough to guess she would be fine with everything. And, no doubt she was. Yuzhira accepted it like it was normal or something. But she noticed something was off with her when they finished whatever conversation her and Reborn had. She meant to ask her about it later but forgot. Regardless, she had more pressing matter at hand.

"Reborn," Kazuko kneeled down in front of the baby, "Can't this wait until the morning?"

"It is morning."

"I mean like nine or ten a.m!"

Reborn nonchalantly hopped onto a wheeled chair that seemed to come from nowhere before he spoke to her and obviously he hadn't heard a word she said.

"Your training starts from 5:30 to 6:30," Kazuko groaned openly. He really wasn't paying her any attention.

"Reborn, please-"

"No more relaxing now, Kazuko," Reborn said as he pulled a random cup of tea from behind him and took small sips with a tranquil expression accompanied by a sigh.

"That's easy for you to say!" Kazuko shouted and pinched the bridge of her nose, "I quit this!"

"Unfortunately, you can't back out now. The contract your parents signed gives me complete permission over you when it comes to Namimori activities."

"That was a contract between me and Professor Borin," Kazuko said in a sarcastic tone and roll of her eyes.

"I am Professor Borin," Reborn said, suddenly in his disguise from the night before.

"Knock it off! And this has nothing to do with Namimori!" Kazuko was getting annoyed now.

"On the contrary," Reborn chuckled darkly, "The contract clearly stipulates what is deemed Namimori activities."

Kazuko opened her mouth to interrupt but was quickly silenced when Reborn handed her a giant magnifying glass.

"Here," he said as he pointed to a part of the contract that listed said stipulations. Underneath the list was a very, very small print that said mafia affairs. Under that category were multiple bullet points of conditions of what those affairs could be. Training, unfortunately, was on there.

"Reborn," Kazuko puffed, "I don't care what that says. You can't make-"

"And there are punishments distributed to you if cannot do your duties," Reborn said as his fingers moved down to a tinier print that read, "If Kazuko does not fulfill her Namimori duties she will be expelled from Namimori."

"E-expulsion?" Kazuko frowned deeply. She would be expelled from school? This was getting ridiculous. She knew Reborn was insane but this is crazy. Kazuko crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the baby was grinning. He knew if she got expelled from school that could leave a blemish on her permernant records. Something her parents wouldn't stand for and something that would tarnish her reputation.

" _Bastardo_ ," Kazuko huffed. Reborn chuckled a bit at his victory, "So what is all this 'Training'?"

"I'm glad you asked," he said, "Members of the mafia are assassins. In order to protect yourself or someone, you care about you must be trained to do so."

"Is that why you told me to dress like this?" Kazuko asked. She had on a pair of black athletic leggings, a black hoodie, and a pair of black tennis shoes.

"Yep."

"And the gym bag?" Reborn had told her to bring her Namimori uniform and toiletries with her as well.

"You'll be training all morning and you won't be able to go home and change," Reborn nodded, "You are going to do a timed run from the first floor to the third. You'll need to dodge all obstacles under five minutes."

"What?!" Kazuko's eyes widened as the baby explained. What was wrong with him? A five-minute time limit to run like a crazy person up and down the school. Who in the world could do that?

"This a test of endurance and stamina," he said as he pulled out a stopwatch, "I know you're somewhat skilled in combat. You're agile and fit. But your initiation is a very important Rite of Passage."

"That sounds like a load of crap Reborn," Kazuko sighed as she walked over to a white line at the front of the hallway, "Let's get this over with."

Kazuko wanted to quit as soon as she examined the first hallway. It was full of hurdles. She could only imagine what the next two floors were like. Reborn didn't make anything easy. She learned that quickly.  
Kazuko took a deep breath as she readied herself at the line, waiting for the signal.

The baby smirked as he watched her.

The fire in her was just what the Vongola Family needed.

* * *

Bastardo..we don't need a translation for that, do we?

But what happens next?! Find out in the next chapter of Two Hearts!

 **SPOILER ALERT** far below!

You ready? Okay...

There will be four, yes four more OCs added to the Two Hearts story.

Pairings are:

HayatoxOC

TakeshixOC

RyoheixOC

XanxusxOC

Coming soon!


	28. Chapter 28

The sun was on the verge of rising. It was six a.m. and she was exhausted.

Kazuko let the warm water run down her body, soothing her aching muscles as it swept the soap down into the drain. She was sore. Extremely sore. Her arms and legs moved so sluggishly.

She could kill Reborn. Her training didn't just consist of timing, running, and hurdles. The first hall was easy. It was just hurdles. When she got to the second floor it looked just like the first floor, however, it was covered in booby traps. One of the booby traps was triggered as soon as she took a step into the hall.

She was hung in the air by a large rope and she immediately failed the second level. To mock her Reborn even held up a large letter 'F' card and told her to start over. The second time around she had dodged the net but there were others. One of them even consisted of a flamethrower shooting random bouts of flames towards her, which she had to dodge while also jumping hurdles.

After setting off a bunch of traps and failing the second floor maybe ten times she eventually passed and got to the third floor, singed. The third floor was worse. It was just like the second one, however, the booby traps were activated with movement and not just stepping on them like the second floor. Not to mention the hurdles moved up and down from slots on the floor. Kazuko would have cried if she hadn't been severely dehydrated and sweating buckets.

The third floor was harder to conquer but once she had she still failed. This was due to her not finishing the run in less than five minutes. So she had to start from the very beginning, twice.

For two hours she had tried her best but was defeated. She had been so weak and very close to giving up when Reborn had told her she had thirty minutes left to complete the training with a pass. She paled. If she didn't pass this time she would have to do it all again a different day because the school was opening soon. There was no way in hell she was doing this again.

Kazuko summoned the last of her strength and dodged every hurling fireball spat at her, jumped every hurdle, and ran as fast as she could. On her last try, she had done it. When she reached the end of the third hall Reborn was waiting for her with a large letter 'A' card and a whistle. She had finished the entire run in four minutes and fifty-five seconds.

Kazuko fell to her knees and took long, deep breaths. Reborn was casually congratulating her while she was planning his murder. Then suddenly Reborn tossed a towel at her and told her to get ready for school. The sun was out and school was in fact about to start an hour and a half from now. Kazuko stood, her legs shaking like a newborn baby dear. She contemplated if she should skip school today and go home to sleep. However, if she did her sister would ask a bunch of questions and she would have never slept anyway. She would do better sleeping at school before classes started.

Kazuko turned the shower off and wrapped herself in a towel and squeezed her hair, letting the excess waterfall onto the tiled floor. She walked to her newly assigned gym locker and pulled out everything she needed to get ready. She was quiet as she got dressed and combed her hair, sweeping her bangs to her forehead. After she felt fresh and clean she placed everything back into her locker and made her way out of the girls dressing room.

Kazuko had figured Reborn had been waiting for her to tell her what to do next but he wasn't there like she expected. However, on the ground in front of her was a note that had her name on it. Kazuko bent down to pick it up.

The note had told her that she was now an official member of the Vongola family and Namimori Middle. But it also said she would be receiving a small break from training. Kazuko rejoiced, thankfully.

She was happy to be over and done with all of that, for now. The last set of instructions on the note told her to sleep before classes so she wouldn't be too tired and that there was a couch apparently in a room she could sleep on.

The reception room, huh?

Kazuko shrugged and made her way to the room. Thankful for Reborn being helpful this time.

Kazuko began to wonder to herself how Reborn got the school to look normal again but decided she was too tired to care. As she searched for the room she noticed there was no evidence of the training that had gone on there just hours before. No fireball cannons, no hurdles, no boobytraps, nothing unusual. She knew if she actually tried to figure out how that was all possible her head would start to hurt so she went on her merry way.

Once Kazuko found the room she slid the door open then closed it behind her. She was a bit impressed. The room was very spacious. There was a large olive leather couch in the middle of the room along with two similar colored leather armchairs across a brown coffee table centered in between them. There was a large desk and chair by the window and a cabinet filled with books against the walls.

There was a large window behind the desk and Kazuko could see the sun was beginning to shine brightly in the sky. She had better hurry and get that nap in. She sat on the couch and stretched. She winced when she felt a dull pain in her arms and legs, silently cursing Reborn and everything he stood for.

Kazuko fell back on the couch and closed her eyes. She slowly let the drowsiness consume her and fell into a deep and well-deserved slumber. She was completely unaware of a small set of footsteps quietly walking into the room and placing a small envelope on the desk before leaving. The small person smirked evilly before sliding the window open and jumping from it.

Kazuko's school training was **just** starting.


End file.
